My Life as Leia
by LiaLia15
Summary: Princess Leia Organa has never loved the royal life, but one day, her family pushes her too far. Taking matters into her own hands, Leia sets out on a thrilling journey of adventure, new relationships, and several life changing secrets. When her life suddenly makes no sense at all, Leia must trust in the Force and those closest to her, or she may stumble down a dark path.
1. Chapter 1: Introduction

**A/N: HEY GUYS! Okay, I don't actually know if someone is reading this/if anyone ever WILL read this. HOWEVER. I've been super duper obsessed with JainaDurron7's fanfiction lately...and I've been debating for a while on whether** ** _I_** **should write a fanfic. But, she's been SO SO inspiring lately with her amazing writing, so I said to myself, "JUST DO IT." And ya know what? Here I am! This story's been in development for quite some time now, so yeah. It's always kinda been an idea in my head. Now it's officially published on a website...uhhh..**  
 **ANYWAY, if someone happens to read this, leave a comment letting me know if you liked this chapter, and/or if I should keep writing the story! Without further ado, I preset to you: MY LIFE AS LEIA!**

Once upon a time...

WAIT. That's not right. This isn't a "once upon a time" type of story. This is something more real and definitely not some fairytale. So, let me start again.

The galaxy had many planets. All of them were stunning and beautiful in their own way, of course. But we're only going to be focusing on _one specific planet_ today.

In case you were wondering, that planet was called Alderaan. Why was this planet so important? Well, I'm glad you asked! Alderaan was home to many wonderful beings - some alien, some human. One of these humans was named Leia Organa.

A young girl of only thirteen (going on fourteen), Leia just so happened to be the _Princess_ and Heir to the Throne of Alderaan. Her father (Bail Organa) was the Viceroy, and her mother (Breha Organa) was the Queen.

You may think that being royalty would be fun — maybe even better than an average life! While that may be true in some instances, Leia's was not one of them. Though she was certainly well off, Princess Leia never quite felt. . .happy with the life she lived.

Some aspects were great, obviously. She had a gorgeous home, a stunning view out her window, a great family, and a lovely home planet. But Leia's desires were not that of physical means. Instead, they were of something. . .well, _not_ physical, clearly.

Leia longed for things that couldn't be touched — they could be felt, and experienced. As an immediate example, one of the things she desired was _freedom_. Being as she was the Princess of an entire planet, Leia didn't have much time to do the things that _she_ wanted. What were those things? I don't know. I'm not sure that even LEIA knew what she wanted to do! She only knew that freedom to live her own life would be fantastic. Exhilarating, even.

Oftentimes, the Princess felt somewhat out of place in her own family. There was definitely a reason for this, but Leia wasn't sure if it would be wrong to express an opinion on it. For the reason was this: Leia was adopted. When she was only a newborn baby, she was given to her current family: the Organas. She knew very little of her birth parents, but perhaps it would be best if we got her direct opinion on the matter.

 **~•~**

Leia layed sprawled out on her enormous bed. The brown haired girl held a pen firmly in one hand and was writing passionately in a book. Yes, the Princess of Alderaan kept a journal.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _I haven't gone downstairs yet today. I'm afraid that Mother will have a guest over. It's not necessarily that I'm unsociable — I just like to keep my distance from anyone that might judge me by my etiquette. Now, any other Princess would be DYING to show off her amazing manners to a fancy guest. Not me. Even though I was virtually raised by royalty, I couldn't impress anyone with ANYTHING._

 _My aunts say that I'm a tomboy, whatever that is. Personally, I don't think it sounds all that bad! It sounds better than a "proper lady". Yes, that's right. I have aunts; three, to be exact. Aunt Celly, Aunt Rouge, and Aunt Tia. They're all my father's sisters, and they're very dedicated to making me into a proper lady. . .a.k.a., one of THEM. I don't think they understand that I won't be changing my personality any time soon. After all — my personality is the only thing I have to hang on to! It's also one of the only things that I have to MYSELF. Soon, I'll probably have to hide this journal so nobody finds it and reads it, considering what little privacy I have these days._

 _Anyway, I've been up here for quite a few hours now. It's currently...0700 hours, so I'm most likely going to be the last one up. My parents get up early — REALLY early. Much earlier than I'd be able to function. I have that to look forward to, I guess._

 _I haven't been getting as much sleep lately. I've tried talking to my parents about it, but they're never around anymore. They're always too busy._

 _It's just. . .lately, I've been more stressed than what's natural. Don't get me wrong — it's not anyone's fault. Nothing has changed in my schedule for the past 3 years. It's actually my OWN fault. There's kind of a long explanation that goes along with this._

 _I've never really liked staying in one place long, but it's been truly bugging me recently. Every time I look out the window, I'm reminded of a promise I made to myself when I was 9._

 _See, when I was younger. . . I used to run away a lot. I never really did it because I wasn't happy at home. I just did it because it was nice to. . .I don't know. . .get away for a while, even if it was just for a few moments._

 _Well, anyway, on one of those little trips, I came across a pavilion (for lack of a better word) behind the palace. I had never noticed it there before, so I naturally wanted to investigate._

 _I found out that it overlooks a river. . .and it has a perfect view of the sky at night. I could see literally THOUSANDS of stars. I told myself that night, "Someday, I'll be up there too. I'll get to travel and see each and every one of those stars."_

 _Now, obviously, I have a more realistic view on life. I don't really plan on visiting every star in the galaxy. . .because that seems like it could be difficult, and somewhat tiresome._

 _I do, however, hold myself to the promise that I'd travel. At this point in life, I can't go anywhere. I have duties and studies here on Alderaan (hooray for responsibility). Therefore, I can't just joyride around the galaxy._

 _But that's the problem! I've been increasingly restless lately, and I'm not sure if there's a cure for such a thing! Ugh. And there isn't a single thing I can do about the situation, either._

 _Well, it's getting around to the time I need to get out of bed. I don't really WANT to, but I also don't want someone to barge in here and demand that I get out (again — lack of privacy). So I guess this is goodbye for now, journal. Wish me luck. I'm going to need it._  
 _-Leia_

With that, Leia shut her journal with a discouraged groan. The princess reluctantly rolled out of bed and planted her feet firmly on the floor.

"Back to the grind," she complained aloud. Getting dressed in something semi-presentable, Leia mentally prepared herself for the day that waited ahead of her. Finally, she swung open her door, walked purposefully down the hall, and started down the stairs.


	2. Chapter 2: The Last Straw

Leia walked down the stairs with extreme caution. As she began to near the bottom, she picked up the sound of voices below. Not wanting to intrude on a conversation, the Princess paused halfway down the steps and stood still.

Eavesdropping was not an activity Leia engaged in regularly. At least, not anymore. As it turned out, adults didn't appreciate it when they discovered a little girl had been listening to their entire private conversation.

But every now and then, when Leia heard part of an exchange that peaked her curiosity, she'd stick around for a moment or two. This particular conversation seemed especially intriguing, mostly because Leia heard her name mentioned more than once.

She strained her ears to hear what was being said downstairs.

". . .old enough. . .own good. . .for the future. . . ," Leia heard.

The voices must have been down the hall farther, because Leia couldn't seem to hear everything being said. Only bits of sentences echoed through the corridor. The voice currently speaking, though, was most definitely her father.

". . .not going to like this. I. . .nonsense. . .maybe we should wait," Bail said.

Leia raised an eyebrow. Who were they talking about? _What_ were they talking about? She guessed there was only one way to find out.

She continued down the stairs and reached the bottom. Her eyes skimmed the entry hall, but she didn't see anyone.

Leia started tiptoeing down the next hallway, following the voices. Finally, she stopped when she heard, "Leia will thank me one day, you know." At that, the young girl became more curious than she'd been earlier. When she turned the corner, there stood her father. . .and Aunt Celly.

"Oh! Well. . .why, hello, Leia!" her aunt said with a shocked expression. Disregarding her, Leia turned to her father for an explanation.

"I'll thank you for _what_?" she asked, tone mostly casual.

Bail, suddenly in a very awkward position, only half-smiled and tilted his head down at Leia.

"Good morning, Leia. Why don't you greet your aunt?"

Leia barely looked at Celly, but she recited, "Good morning, Aunt Celly, it's very nice to see you."

She returned her attention to Bail. "Now, what will I be thanking you for?"

Unwilling to break the news, the Viceroy turned to his expressive sister, prompting her to take the lead.

Aunt Celly's eyes widened, but she met Leia's no-longer-casual gaze. Leia had sensed from Bail's hesitation that the matter was going to be anything but humorous.

"Oh, well, you see, darling. . .your father and I have just been talking. . ." she trailed off.

In any other circumstance, Leia would have politely waited for her aunt to continue. But this was no longer a normal circumstance. Therefore, Leia cleared her throat as if to say, "Well? Go on."

Aunt Celly got the hint, but she failed to actually explain. Finally, Bail began with a sigh.

"We were only discussing your future," he said. "You are thirteen now, nearly fourteen. It is only natural that we begin looking beyond."

Leia furrowed her brow and attempted to process that information.

"Alright, but what are you looking beyond at? I'm barely a teenager! I hope you're not thinking of anything. . .romance related," Leia said. The girl had meant it as a joke, but the look her aunt and father shared erased all humor from her mind.

"Wait, you don't mean to tell me—" she began.

"No, Leia. We weren't talking about anything long-term. We were merely thinking it may be time for you to. . .broaden your horizons a little," Bail said, placing a hand on his daughter's shoulder.

"Broaden my horizons?" Leia inquired. This time, her aunt explained.

"Yes, it means to branch out. To be a little more sociable never hurt anyone. We've arranged a series of _casual_ meetings for you. You can get to know the boys, make some friends. . . " Once again, her aunt trailed off. Leia knew there was more to what she had been told. And she didn't like it.

This had happened before. Her aunts were always trying to bring some rich noble into Leia's life, hoping the two would "get along splendidly" and perhaps "insure a pleasant future for the planet".

Leia _despised_ it all. In her own mind, she was barely old enough to wear pearls, let alone think about her future — or the future of _Alderaan itself._

She had enough things to be stressed about. Did they have to add "romance" on top of the pile? And did Leia ever get a say in any of it? No. Never.

"That's not all, is it? This is just some early preparation for me to get _married,_ isn't it? You only want me to 'get to know the boys' because you hope I'll end up marrying one!" Leia knew she was reacting out of anger, but she was too upset to care.

"Tell me — are there any boys included that _aren't royal_?" Leia asked with a scornful look. Bail stepped in and tried to resolve the matter.

"Leia, we only want what's best for you. Think of it as practice for what is coming when you _are_ old enough to marry. Nothing has to be immediate or permanent. You ought to handle this with maturity and respect."

That, of course, only made Leia boil even more.

"What if I don't want to _worry_ about marriage?! I'm only _thirteen_! I want to _act_ like I'm thirteen! Not pretend that I'm a queen until it actually happens!" Leia shouted.

Her words echoed off the white halls and made passing servants stop and stare. They whispering amongst themselves and hurriedly scurried away.

Finally unable to handle it any longer, Leia turned on her heel and ran back the way she had came.

Bail and Celly were left standing there, not quite knowing what to think.

"I told you she wouldn't like it," Bail scolded, watching as Leia retreated down the entry hall.

 **~•~**

Leia bolted all the way back upstairs and straight into her bedroom. As usual, she knew she should've just stayed in bed. Nothing good ever came from waking up early.

She slammed the door for dramatic emphasis and slumped to the floor. With an angry sigh, she curled up with her knees to her chest.

"When did being thirteen get so difficult?" Leia fumed to no one in particular.

Things used to be so so simple. People never used to act like she was their token to present to another royal family in exchange for some sort of mutual truce. She used to be so carefree and happy.

Where did _those_ times go? It made Leia wish she had had the sense to cherish those golden days while they had lasted. There was no turning back now, and that was (for some reason) a very sobering thought.

Defeated, Leia stood up and retrieved her journal from its hiding place under her pillow. She flopped down on her bed and started writing, right where she'd left off.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well that didn't go very well. I knew I shouldn't have gone downstairs._

 _Anyway, it turns out that Aunt Celly is here. I went downstairs and heard her speaking with Father, and I "overheard" some things. I eventually decided to confront them, but I got closer. . .and they were talking about ME. So, I turned the corner and there they were. I could tell by their faces that they wished I wasn't standing there, but I kind of made them explain._

 _Well, Father and Aunt Celly (and most likely both of my other aunts) want me to attend some sort of "meetings" where I'll be greeting. . .ugh. . .boys. And they want me to actually ENJOY it! I know their scheme, though. They think if I go to their meetings, I'll end up absolutely adoring some wealthy boy, meeting up with him more often, becoming best friends with him, falling in love with him, and eventually MARRYING him! Not that it needs to be said. . .but I'm COMPLETELY against their plan!_

 _They can't dupe me into falling in love with some cocky PRINCE. I know what they want, and I'm not giving it to them._

 _But then. . .where does that leave me? I can't just SAY I won't do it, because my aunts will MAKE me! I know Father doesn't really approve of the idea (he never did want me to grow up very quickly), but he's given up trying to argue with my aunts. He says it gives him a migraine or something like that. But that's beside the point!_

 _There has to be something I can do to change their minds! My aunts need to be shown that they can't just walk all over my father; plus, they can't display me like one of their creepy porcelain dolls. They've controlled me for far too long, and I've LET them._

 _Not to mention, I'm only 13! I'm scarcely old enough to LIKE a boy. I don't have any interest in falling in LOVE with one! What does that even mean? "Love"? "Appreciate their existence" seems just fine to me._

 _I think it's high time I do something about this nonsense. But what can I do? What could I possibly do that would change their minds? It would have to be drastic — not just something they'll punish me for and move on. Something I've never done before. . .something completely unpredictable._

 _I KNOW! I'll run away! But not just ANY running away. No._

 _I'm going to STOW AWAY!_

 _Yes, it's perfect! I'll find a ship and stow away on it! But wait. . .that almost seems TOO drastic. On the other hand. . .what choice do I have? Rush into all this "love" business. . .or stow away and leave it all behind?_

 _Hmm. The second option is definitely my choice._

 _It's set and stone. Tomorrow night, I'm leaving here and all their crazy love ideas. We'll see how much they "love" it when I'm not around for them to control anymore._

 **-** _Leia_

Leia smiled to herself as she rehid her journal. Her plan seemed virtually foolproof! Her parents would never expect her to do something so insane.

But that's what happens when you push someone too far, I suppose.

With a definite plan of action in her head, Leia began to pack some things in a satchel.

"Tomorrow night," Leia whispered, "I'm out of here."

 **AN: Hey there! Hope you enjoyed this new chapter of My Life As Leia! I got a couple of comments last night on the last chapter that really made me smile :) I was literally like, "Whoa. People actually LIKE what I wrote?!" So anyhoo...thanks so much to the people that commented, and I hope you stick around! Any guesses to what ship Leia will stow away on? ;)**  
 **-Lia**


	3. Chapter 3: She's A Little Runaway

It was finally time. The clock said 12:00 AM. . .otherwise known as midnight. Princess Leia was quietly sitting up in bed with her journal out.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well, it's finally time! It's exactly midnight, which means I need to head out as soon as possible. I thought about saying good night to my parents. . .but I'm not quite sure they would've been around. Plus, I'm still angry with Father._

 _So, I stayed right in my room and finished packing some things in my satchel: a change of clothes, a hairbrush and hair ties, a little bit of food, my datapad, a glow rod, and I'll be packing this journal and pen. I had to really cram everything into my bag because it's pretty small._

 _I honestly have NO idea where I'm actually GOING. I don't really have a plan. . .which makes me kind of mad at myself. I really should've come up with some sort of idea about what's going to happen. I mean, I can't exactly just leave and live on the streets for a few days. I'll need to seek out a ship right away. That's going to be the hardest part of the whole ordeal._

 _Almost every bone in my body is screaming at me to NOT run away. It definitely seems quite. . .I don't know. . .extreme! What will my mother and father think? I hope they don't think someone kidnapped me, because I don't want to lead them down the wrong trail. After all, they_ are _my parents. The last thing I want to do is worry them to death._

 _However, I'll be worrying them just by not being here when they wake up. There's a good chance that someone will be sent out to find me. Little do they know that I'll most likely be off-planet by then._

 _This plan to stow away is really extreme, but it's also sounding kind of. . .fun! Being a stowaway on someone's ship will be an adventure! And my very first time off-planet!_

 _I just need to make sure that the pilot doesn't see me! I can sneak food when I need it, and I can use the sanistream when they're asleep or something. It kind of depends though. Will the ship I choose even HAVE a sanistream? With my luck, I'll end up choosing some sort of pirate ship. That seems like it could be dangerous, if you ask me._

 _Anyway, I should probably stop journaling and get moving. I've never left the palace at NIGHT before, so this is going to be difficult. My parents' room is right next to mine, so they'll probably hear any noise I make. I need to go before I regain my sanity and change my mind. Wish me luck._  
 _-Leia_

She closed her journal, putting it and her pen in her satchel. Being as ready as she'd ever be, Princess Leia rolled out of bed and walked slowly to her terrace doors. She nervously glanced at the wall that separated her room from her parents'.

"I hope I don't regret this," Leia thought.

She didn't want to wait any longer, so she crept to the glass doors and placed a hand on one of the doorknobs. Carefully and slowly, Leia turned the porcelain knob and opened the door.

She cringed as the door made the slightest squeak. Thankfully, it wasn't loud enough for her parents to hear — or so she hoped.

When the door was open wide enough, Leia slipped through the opening and closed the door behind her. She was then standing on her balcony. The crisp, cool air filled Leia's lungs with determination.

Now, Leia only needed a way down.

She searched quietly for some kind of an escape route so she could get to the ground. A lattice with vines climbing up it caught the Princess's eye. The girl sighed with relief and made her way to the edge of the balcony.

She peered warily over the edge and hoped with all her might that she didn't fall. The last thing she needed was to end up with a broken neck.

Pushing all doubts aside, Leia turned around and stepped stealthily to the right side of the railing. Over the rail was a ledge that wrapped all the way around the palace. Leia slung the satchel over her shoulder and lifted one leg over the railing. . .then the other leg. Now she stood precariously on the edge of the ledge.

Leia willed herself not to look down. . .but her curiosity got the better of her. She turned her eyes downward and gasped. It was certainly a _long drop_. Leia took a deep breath to calm her racing heart and carefully inched sideways. Slowly but surely, she made her way to the lattice.

Now came the tricky part: actually getting down.

Leia, making sure to take careful steps, turned around and kneeled down. She lowered her left leg until it nudged the lattice. When she had what she hoped was a firm foothold, Leia lowered her right leg the same way. Now both her feet were using the lattice like a ladder. Finally, Leia began to climb down. With each step, she winced and hoped that the lattice wouldn't break and send her plummeting down below.

After what seemed like excruciating hours (it was really only a few minutes), Leia's feet found solid ground. She let out a huge breath that she hadn't realized she'd been holding, looked one last time at the palace, and started tiptoeing through the garden.

Leia had to step carefully to make sure that A.) she didn't step on her mother's plants, and B.) she didn't trip on anything. Both precautions proved to be quite difficult at night.

At last, Leia reached the mossy, stone wall that separated the garden from the town. She needed a way over it. . .but how? Leia didn't think it would be _easy_ to scale a wall when it was past midnight, but there didn't seem to be any other options. Or were there?

Her eyes once more scanned the area for some other. . .easier. . .way. They landed on a tight gap between the wall and a part of the palace. Leia squinted to see it more clearly. The gap wasn't very wide, but she just might fit.

"Well, my aunts _do_ always tell me that I'm small," she thought, somewhat bitterly.

With that in mind, she walked to the gap and turned sideways so she could have a little more space. Her nose was just centimeters away from the opposite wall, but she payed the close proximity no mind.

After several minutes of squeezing through the narrow space, she reached the end with a smile. Leia exited the makeshift passageway and gazed out at the town.

She had never seen the town at night; it was absolutely beautiful. The lights that were hung on houses glowed gorgeously in the dark, and the small stream reflected the starlight off of it. Leia was almost breathless.

But she reminded herself that she must move on. She had to find a ship before daylight. Otherwise, her parents would send out some sort of a search party for her.

With a goal in mind, Leia crept forward and kept her eyes open for a ship. She knew she'd have to go farther out if she wanted to find one. Therefore, she _did_ walk further.

With the stars as her light, Princess Leia continued her journey outward.

 **AN: hiiii again! I know most people upload once a week or something like that, but I happen to really like writing...so the chapters just get published sooner! If that makes me weird, oh well, I guess! :)**  
 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I actually worked a little harder on this one. Leave a comment telling me what you think so I can improve, plus...they just make me really happy :) anyway, bye for now and expect a new chapter soon!**  
 **-Lia**


	4. Chapter 4: All Aboard

Leia very rarely adventured through Aldera, the city surrounding the palace. In fact, any time she was outside her home, she was accompanied by at least two other people — and, of course, it was always daylight.

Yet, somehow, she knew her way around. The streets were dark and abandoned, lit only by scarce hanging lanterns and the starlight. She didn't dare make a sound.

The shipyard wasn't far — not that the Princess should really know that fact. She'd never been to that particular area of the town. After all, what was the point in going there? She never left Alderaan.

Nevertheless, Leia arrived soon enough at the desired location. As it was even farther from the town center, little to no light was given.

Leia crept silently through the shipyard. There, many tourist and or citizen ships were parked and docked. The Princess desperately hoped that she'd find a ship that she didn't recognize so she could board it. Either way, she'd have to board quickly and quietly — no one could know that she was aboard.

Her plan was to stow away and exit the ship when it reached a destination. If the pilot found out that the Princess of Alderaan was aboard their ship, things would only go downhill from there.

With all this in mind, Leia stalked the shipyard and eyed every vessel she walked past. Some she recognized as Alderaan citizen ships; she definitely wouldn't be boarding one of those.

Others were completely new to her; that was what she wanted. However, she couldn't seem to decide on one. Her fate kind of depended on what ship she chose. The worse case scenario was that she would end up choosing a pirate ship. But as far as Leia was concerned, pirates didn't really occupy Alderaan.

At least. . .she hoped that they didn't. She _had_ heard stories about smugglers, though. Were smugglers the same as pirates? They sounded similar to her.

Suddenly feeling significantly less safe, Leia's eyes spotted a rusty, mismatched, grey ship with the ramp lowered. Instantly, she darted towards it. That could be her only chance to board a ship.

She knew, of course, that it was risky. Her brain was sending her all sorts of signals and red flags and warnings. But there was no time to rethink her decision. It was now or never.

Leia ran to the lowered ramp and skidded to a halt at the base of it. She strained her ears to make sure she didn't hear anything. Then, when the coast was hopefully clear, Leia tiptoed up the metallic ramp and directly into the ship.

She took a moment to observe her new surroundings. A few halls split the entry area into seperate parts, and there were pipes and wires everywhere.

The floor was dirty and the walls weren't any better. Crates lined the room that Leia currently stood in. From somewhere inside (or perhaps underneath) the ship, something clanged into something else, and a hollow ringing sound echoed throughout the entrance.

Readjusting her satchel slung over her shoulder, the young girl took a deep breath and walked onward. She took extremely careful steps as to not creak the floor (it was metal. . .but she mustn't take chances). Leia chose a hall and started down it.

The corridor led out to another dimly lit room. There were a few chairs, a standard control station, a checkered game table with a couch (of sorts) around it, and more boxes. Leia wanted to snort in disdain at how unkempt the ship was. If only her father were here to see this.

"What kind of person leaves their ship in this condition? With all this junk lying around, you'd think the person _lived_ in this ship!" Leia thought.

Regardless, she chose another hall and explored further. This passage opened up to what was apparently one of the cargo holds. . .or the very back of the ship. Leia figured it might be a good place to hide out for the time being.

She'd just have to keep exploring, though, so she could at least start to memorize the layout. From the looks of the outside of the ship, it appeared to be some sort of freighter. . .but she could be wrong. Leia didn't know much about ships.

Leia was about to continue her exploration, but a noise resembling footsteps stopped her in her tracks. Instinctively, Leia dove behind a larger crate and crouched there.

The footsteps got closer. . .and closer. . .until they _had_ to be in the same room as Leia. She tried to take steady breaths in a futile attempt to calm her rapidly beating heart. The Princess finally worked up enough courage to peek around the crate that hid her.

That act of courage earned her a glance of what must've been the pilot of the ship. It was a male, and he looked quite a bit older than her. His brown hair was tousled and looked as if he never bothered to run a comb through it. He was tall (well, to Leia, everyone was tall. . .), and he wore a black vest over a white shirt. His pants were dark and sported the brighter bloodstripe of a. . .Corellian? Leia wasn't quite sure, but she was almost positive. She'd learned it at some point during her tutoring.

The man was carrying a rather large box and appeared to be having a hard time seeing around it. Due to that, the pilot crashed into several other crates before he lowered the other one to the floor.

He let out a long breath and glanced around the room. At that, Leia ducked behind her hiding place once more. Only when the man's footsteps were down the hall did Leia come out.

She, too, let out a breath. She hadn't realized that she had been holding her breath most of the time the pilot was in the room. That had been a close call. Too close.

Convinced that it was no longer safe to just wander around the ship, Leia sat down behind the same box and pulled out her journal.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well, I actually did it! I, Princess Leia Organa, am aboard a ship as a stowaway! How incredibly amazing is that?_

 _Well, I guess "amazing" is an exaggeration. I'm actually not really enjoying the experience so far. In fact, I'm having a hard time blocking out these "second thoughts"._

 _This ship is an absolute JOKE. It's dirty, disorganized, junky, and to be honest, the pilot probably patched it together with tape and prayers._

 _I don't believe it'll actually take off._

 _The exterior looks like it has tumbled through an extreme asteroid field or something._

 _I'm currently sitting on the floor in the cargo hold. I THINK it's the cargo hold. It could be something else, because I know exactly NOTHING about this ship. I only know that it's truly a piece of junk._

 _The pilot seems to fit the ship, actually. YES, I saw the pilot! It's a man, and he looks kind of like. . .like. . .oh, I don't know. But he certainly doesn't look like he belongs on Alderaan! I wonder what brought him here. Then again, that's none of my concern. His job is to take this ship to another planet so I can hop off._

 _Don't get me wrong — I have no intention of telling him anything. If all goes as planned, he won't even know I was ever here. The man doesn't look that bright (no offense) so I don't think he'll figure anything out._

 _From this point forward, I don't really have a plan. Now that I think about it, I should've used my commen sense and waited a few days before I ran off. Maybe then I would've had some time to come up with a decent plan._

 _This whole thing is actually really dangerous. I know nothing about this ship OR its pilot! For all I know, we could fly into a black hole! It's not like this pilot was recommended or anything! I just picked him out of the gutter! Brilliant, Leia. Just brilliant._

 _What does that mean for me? Gosh, I don't know. I'm just hoping I survive these next few days. Or weeks. Or months._

 _Honestly, I have no idea how long this will go on. I wonder if my parents have noticed I'm gone yet. It's still very late._

 _Well, I should go. I need sleep. I don't have my chronos with me, but it must be past 2 in the morning. I hope all goes according to plan. Otherwise, I'm in deep trouble._

 _-Leia_

She closed her journal and laid it aside. Leia then curled up on the hard, cold, dirty, dusty floor to get some much needed sleep.

Although, in all honesty, she wasn't really 100% sure that she would actually GET any sleep. Sleeping as a stowaway on someone's floor would most likely make "relaxing" next to impossible.

Leia frowned and adjusted her position. This was going to be a long night.

 **AN: Hiiii readers (I have readers! WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN?!)! So here's another chapter (duh, you already know that)! Leia has finally wandered upon a ship...it won't be too hard to find out which one it is *wink wink nudge nudge***  
 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter! So far, in total, this story has twenty-some views! For me, that's kind of...AWESOME. I never really thought anyone would read it, let alone LIKE it. Eeeesh!**  
 **Speaking of which...if you DID like it, let me know by leaving a comment! A few people have commented on every chapter so far, so THANK YOUUU to them (Ya know who ya are**? **). That said, have a lovely day/night and I hope you enjoyed! :) :) :)**  
 **-Lia**


	5. Chapter 5: Flyboy

Princess Leia groggily opened one eye. She knew it must be morning, but there weren't exactly any windows to prove it.

Leia reluctantly opened both eyes this time and sighed with annoyance. She figured that it was time to get up, whether she wanted to or not. Staying sprawled out on the floor was much too risky, considering the pilot could wander in at any moment.

Leia slowly sat upright before feeling the ship jolt slightly underneath her. The movement was accompanied by an odd clunking sound.

The noise had resonated from below. . .but what caused it?

 _Would it hurt to investigate_? Leia thought, smiling.

With newfound energy and curiosity, Leia stood up, placed her satchel back around her shoulder and made her way out of the cargo area.

As soon as she left the supposed safety of the storage room, the courage all but left her. Being out in the open was surprisingly scary.

Every step she took only increased her anxiety. The floor of the ship was made of metal, but it still managed to creak or squeak with almost each of Leia's footsteps.

 _Junk,_ Leia thought about the ship.

She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and kept going.

Finally, she reached a junction in the hall. One way, she assumed, would probably get her to a window. The other would most likely end up getting her hopelessly lost in a rickety ship with an unknown and potentially dangerous pilot.

Leia chose a direction without much consideration and crept forward. Several glances in every which way proved that no one was moving around in the ship so far. At least, not that she could hear.

 _I suppose the pilot isn't awake yet_ — Leia thought. But that thought was cut short by movement in the corner of her eye. The girl's heart practically leapt out of her chest, especially since she had already been at peak paranoia.

Leia slowly turned her head to the side, ready to bolt at the first sign of anyone.

There, directly in front of her, was an open door which led into the cockpit of the ship. However, standing hunched over the control board in the cockpit, there was a man. . .the same man Leia had seen yesterday.

The girl was virtually paralyzed with uncharacteristic fear; if the man turned around, even a little bit, he'd see Leia for sure. Then, there wasn't much chance of carrying out her plan.

The Princess shifted her weight nervously from foot to foot, thoughts tumbling around in her head.

Her instinct told her to _run_ , but her common sense said to wait for the right moment.

Leia would much rather break into a sprint and retreat to the safety of her crate-fortress, but something kept her from doing so. She instead gazed intently at the man in the cockpit, using this opportunity to finally view him fully.

He wasn't just hunched over the control board — he was also messing with controls and levers. Leia watched the way he expertly silenced beeps and navigated his way around the controls.

Even though she could really only see the back of him, Leia realized that this pilot didn't actually look _that_ much older than her; he was only perhaps two or three years older. Yet, that made Leia wonder about something.

She herself was merely thirteen. If this man was, say, fifteen. . .well, call her crazy, but that just seemed a little young to be out around the galaxy with his own ship!

There was always the slim chance that he was just extremely mature for his age, but that didn't seem to make sense either. Leia's father had always told her that boys never truly matured, and the opinion had definitely seemed logical at the time.

But now. . .Leia thought this man was one of two things: incredibly brave, or incredibly stupid.

Who in their right mind would resort to a life in which you fly to a new foreign location every day and do odd jobs to make a living?

 _Wait,_ Leia thought. _I don't know anything about this person! Why am I assuming he's some piloting nomad who does odd jobs? Maybe that's just the typical stereotype for smugglers. WAIT, why am I assuming he's a smuggler?_!

Leia shook her head and frowned. Where were all these random thoughts coming from? The paranoia was clearly messing with her.

This person couldn't be a smuggler. . .or could he?

Leia sternly reminded herself that she was in unfamiliar territory with an unfamiliar person — it was natural to assume odd things! Besides, she'd never been off-planet before, and still had much to learn and experience.

Perhaps she was just making excuses for her overactive imagination.

However, she couldn't just stand there all day and _wait_ for the pilot to see her. That wasn't logical at all. He was fully facing away from her, muttering at a flashing light — now was her chance to escape.

To prevent any unfortunate events, Leia took one giant lunge forward that resembled more of a leap than a step. Now she was out of the doorway area, so the strange man wouldn't see her, and she was free to continue on her merry way.

The ship jolted and lurched again, causing Leia to stumble over her own feet and trip. She narrowly caught hold of a pipe which kept her from hitting the floor. The Princess wasn't that worried about injuring herself — she was concerned about making noise.

All these interruptions and difficulties were making Leia want to abandon this mini expedition. The cargo hold was definitely safer, she would be less prone to fall over.

But her stubbornness forced her to carry on, only somewhat willingly.

Cautiously, Leia continued her silent journey. An unpleasant noise sounded in her stomach, and she assumed she was hungry. After all, sneaking onto your balcony, climbing down the wall while clinging to flimsy lattice, running haphazardly through a garden at night, searching the shipyard, stowing away on a ship and hiding all night can make a girl hungry.

Leia, however, hadn't the slightest clue as to where she could _find_ food. Did this ship have a kitchen? She doubted it. It didn't seem that this ship had _anything_ to offer her. But Leia supposed that she should look anyway.

She continued down a hall, turned a corner, and slammed right into a mass of dark fur.

"Mmph!" Leia grunted.

She staggered backwards, tripping and landing on her tailbone. When Leia looked up, she very much wished she hadn't.

Not three feet away, there stood an immensely tall creature, staring right down at her with beady, black eyes.

It made no move to attack, so Leia risked pushing herself back to a standing position. The animal only blinked, curiously tilting its head.

Maybe, if she was fast, Leia could run back to the storage area. Or perhaps the creature spoke Basic, and Leia could offer an explanation as to why she was onboard.

Leia said, "Uh. . .if I—"

The creature stopped her with an awful growling noise. Leia could see its teeth as the the hairy animal snarled.

Leia couldn't tell if it was angry or not. The noise sounded upset, but the face looked surprisingly passive.

She looked directly into the creature's eyes by accident and immediately looked away. Leia, however, wasn't a generally fearful person. Whatever ounce of courage she had left was about to be used in one single action: making eye contact with the beast. She had to prove that she wasn't afraid of it.

Her brown eyes met the intimidating animal's black ones. The creature made another curious barking sound, making Leia jump slightly where she stood. It almost sounded like the creature was asking her a question.

"Uh—I—uh. . .I don't. . .do you—I wasn't—" Leia stuttered. This time, the animal backed up and the Princess got a slightly better view of it.

It seemed to be taller than any being she had seen in her lifetime. It was covered, head to toe, in shaggy, brown fur. It's face resembled that of a. . .forest creature? Desert creature? Leia couldn't decide.

The being wore nothing except a sort of leather sash, equipped with. . .handheld explosives. And one thing was sure: it apparently did NOT speak Basic.

Leia took another step back and was about to make a run for it, but the creature must have guessed it first, because it's hairy paw closed around her wrist in one swift motion.

This unexpected move sent Leia's anxiety into overdrive.

"No, hang on! I—I didn't do anything! I was just. . .sleepwalking! Yeah, I was sleepwalking, and I saw this ship, but I thought I was dreaming. . ." Leia said desperately.

The creature only shook it's head in annoyance and began leading her down the hall. Leia pulled harder and harder at her wrist to try to free it. The effort did nothing to help her situation, but the creature did give her a once-over before coming to a complete stop. It looked her up and down, barked again, and kept walking — pulling Leia along with it.

Within mere seconds, they arrived at the cockpit entrance. Leia suddenly realized what the animal had planned: it wanted to show the pilot that there was a stowaway. Leia didn't approve at all.

The duo entered the cockpit to see the pilot now sitting in the pilot's chair, feet propped up on the control board.

When the creature "rawwwhhred" again, the pilot only said, "Yeah, right." His voice was thick with sarcasm and sounded deep, but still young.

Leia tried to focus on more pressing matters.

The creature growled again, and this time, the man turned around, sighing as if it pained him.

It took him a few seconds to notice Leia standing there, trying to hide behind the creature. The man frowned, lips slightly parted, and he stalked over to her as if not believing his eyes.

"Uh, Chewie? Who's this ya got here?" the pilot asked. He looked genuinely shocked at the small girl who stood shamefully before him. Leia tried to make eye contact, but eventually gave up on that.

"Who are you, and whaddya think you're doin' on my _ship_?" the man asked with a threatening (and, Leia noted, kind of condescending) tone. Leia averted her eyes and instead looked at her feet.

"I—I'm really sorry. I know I. . .uh. . .shouldn't be here," she replied pathetically. She was too busy eyeing the pilots tousled hair and sharp jawline. There was a small scar hidden partly beneath his chin. Leia thought it made him look rough, but in a good way.

The man frowned deeper, not oblivious to the way Leia's attention was focused elsewhere.

"I'm gonna ask you one more time: who are you? And _why are you on my ship?!_ "

Leia's heart was beating faster than what was healthy for a human. Whether that was from the severity of the question or the fact that he was standing so close, Leia didn't know.

It didn't look like there was a way out of this.

"I—I'm Leia. I'm on your ship because. . ." A pause.

 _Might as well tell the truth._

"Because I ran away from home," she finally said.

The pilot, though only slightly older than her, made Leia feel like she was six years old.

"And where is 'home'?" he asked, squinting.

Leia mentally debated her options: tell him and get sent back home, or keep quiet and endure whatever he dished out to her aboard the ship. Would it really be so bad to travel with this person? He didn't seem as intimidating anymore.

 _I'm not thinking straight._

Suddenly, the question sunk in. 'Where was her home?' Weren't they still on Alderaan?

Leia craned her neck to look past the pilot and out the cockpit window. A gasp escaped her lips as she realized that they _weren't_ on Alderaan. They were, in fact, in space.

Something in Leia's stomach did a loop-de-loop. She wanted to run to the window and press her face to the glass, admiring all the twinkling stars that she'd yearned for all those years.

"I asked you a question!" the man shouted again, reminding Leia of reality.

"Okay, fine," Leia said, thinking quickly. "If you tell me _your_ name, I'll tell you where I'm from."

The pilot seemed to consider.

"All right, deal. The name's Han. And you're from. . . ?"

Han.

 _Hmm._

Leia wanted to say the name, over and over again, just to see how it sounded coming out of _her_ mouth. For some reason, Leia could no longer think of him as anything but "Han".

It was a nice name, she thought.

"Just kidding," Leia said with a mischievous grin. "It's classified. But see? Now we know eachother a little better!"

Han's mouth dropped open in disbelief.

"Why you little. . ." Han muttered. "Chewie, go put her in the second cargo hold. I'll talk to her _later_ about why she stowed away on my ship!" he said through clenched teeth.

"WAIT!" Leia shrieked. Han turned to her with an angry expression.

" _What?_ "

"One quick question." The urgency had left Leia's voice, quite purposefully.

" _WHAT?_ "

"What's the walking carpet's species?" Leia asked, casually. Han smacked his forehead with his palm.

"His _name_ is Chewbacca, and he's a Wookiee. There. Happy?" Han answered, still glaring at her.

Leia nodded and was led back to the cargo hold. Once there, Chewbacca closed the door and Leia heard the click of a lock.

Something had certainly misfired in Leia's brain, because she was finding it increasingly amusing to annoy the pilot — Han, she repeated.

 _Han._

It was entertaining to get a rise out of him.

Odd. She had know him for about five minutes and was already thinking about him too much.

Leia shook it off, visibly shuddering.

She would have to explain herself eventually — for stowing away. And she was stuck in the cargo hold. And now her presence wasn't a secret anymore.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Let's just say I made a mistake. This is a super short entry because I'm way too mad at myself to write! Why am I so STUPID? Good things never happen when I decide to get out of bed and wander around! Now Han knows I'm here, and so does his giant brown rug of a co-pilot! This is just_ great.  
- _Leia_

 **A/N: Hi guys! Whew, this was a longer chapter for me to write! It's so weird how it takes FOREVER to write chapters, but it only takes a couple minutes to read one. Whatever, I guess.**  
 **So Leia got caught, and YES- Han and Chewie have officially entered my story! Get excited, people.**  
 **Just as a clarification, Han is actually only a few years older than Leia in this story. Technically, Wookiepedia says that Han is actually TEN years older than Leia...so yeah. That's why it's an AU, hehe. YAH, I use Wookiepedia sometimes :)**  
 **Anywayyy, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you DID, please let me know by leaving a comment, because they motivate me and who doesn't like motivation? Have a great day/night, and I'll see you in the next chapter!**

 **-Lia**


	6. Chapter 6: Two Can Play At That Game

**Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well, I'm counting this as my first official day in space._

 _Unfortunately, it's not going the way I was hoping it would. Remember that plan about not letting the pilot see me? Yeah, well, time for Plan B, because he definitely saw me. (There isn't a Plan B. I didn't plan for this!) And not only the pilot, no. His CO-PILOT also knows I'm here!_

 _I didn't know there were TWO people aboard! Well, the "Wookiee" doesn't exactly classify as a person, but it's still a living thing._

 _Oh, right, I forgot to tell you. The co-pilot is a Wookiee (that's a new word for me) and he has a name. The pilot, named Han, calls him "Chewie", but his full name is Chewbacca. How do I know this? Well I'm glad you asked! I was trying to find something to EAT around here, but I crashed face first into the Wookiee who proceeded to turn me in!_

 _What a life I'm having._

 _The pilot — sorry, HAN told Chewbacca to put me back in the cargo area, so that's just wonderful. At least it's the same room I was hiding in before. Now maybe I can find a way to escape._

 _Hang on — scratch that. I CAN'T escape because we're in SPACE!_

 _Is it a wonderful experience? Yes. Am I able to thoroughly enjoy it? NO! Instead, I'm locked in the cargo area waiting for Han to walk in here and yell at me! At least, I assume that's what he's going to do. He just seems like that type, you know? Definitely hot-headed. Extremely annoying._

 _I haven't told him any personal information except for my name, so that's covered. He wants to know where I live, but NO WAY am I telling him that! There's an 87% chance that he'll return me home for a reward or something._

 _I mean, home definitely beats this situation, but I have to keep in mind why I left in the first place. My aunts' ideas of love differ greatly from my own. If I ever get around to marrying someone, it won't be because I_ ** _have_** _to. It'll be because I want to._

 _It's actually been a full day since the Wookiee threw me in here. Han said he'd "talk to me later", but "later" is taking a long time to get here._

 _I don't plan on telling him anything, so he'll just be wasting his time. I, however, would like to know a few things about HIM. But that doesn't mean anything, so just ignore it, okay?_

 _That said, I think I hear footsteps. This is goodbye for now!_

 _-Leia_

She hastily slammed her journal shut and (equally as hastily) jammed it back in her satchel. As soon as she clambered to her feet, the door to the room slid open to reveal the pilot she already disliked (or so she kept telling herself).

"So, _Leia_ , it's time we had a little chat," he said, looking her over.

"You know, I was about to say the same thing. I feel like there's a lot that needs to be explained," she fired back.

Han didn't look all that effected, but he was definitely interested.

"Yeah, that's true. Speaking of which. . .where did you say you were from again?"

"Nice try. . .Flyboy." Leia felt proud of the nickname she'd invented. "I'm not telling you anything."

"Kid, I can't bring you back home if you don't tell me where you live!"

The name "Kid" did not sit well with Leia.

"What if I don't _want_ to go back home?" she spat, immediately clamping her mouth shut with realization.

Han took half a step back and raised one eyebrow. His curious eyes searched Leia's for a moment. She tried to retain an air of defiance and composure, but on the inside, her heart was beating significantly faster. For completely. . .unknown. . .reasons.

When Leia refocused, she noticed that there had been a change in Han's expression. The interest and exasperation was replaced with a look that resembled. . .understanding?

As soon as it appeared, it was gone.

Finally, he said with half a smirk, "Yeah, I know how that feels, Kid."

Leia processed the sentence, but really only heard one word.

"Stop calling me 'Kid'."

"Yeah, how old are you? Nine? Ten?"

Leia gave a gasp of indignation.

"I'm _THIRTEEN!_ "

"Oh. Coulda fooled me."

Leia was getting more and more fed up with this guy. Who did he think he was?! She was a PRINCESS! How dare he treat her like this! Nine years old? Leia was appalled.

Her fury let words boil up inside her until they couldn't remain unsaid.

"You do realize you're talking to a _PRINCESS_ , right?! How dare you act like this! I _demand_ a higher level of respect, immediately!" she yelled.

Suddenly realizing what she had just said, Leia slapped a hand over her mouth.

Maybe she had lashed out because she really _was_ upset with Han. Or perhaps she had over-dramatized the opportunity to look good in front of him. Either way. . .

 _Whoops._

"So, a Princess, huh? Well, that's different. My deepest apologies, Your Worship," Han said, bowing elaborately, much to Leia's annoyance.

Han stopped a moment to really _look_ at the girl before him. She had to be kidding, right? A _princess_?

She was short and petite. Her long brown hair was wavy and in a messy bun at the nape of her neck. The clothes she wore consisted of a grey tunic over black leggings, and dark sandals on her feet. She didn't exactly _look_ like a princess.

Didn't royal people usually have a crown? Or fancy clothes? Or immaculate hair?

"You, uh, don't exactly fit the part, do ya?" Han grinned, choosing to humor her.

"What makes you say that?"

"Have ya looked in a mirror lately?"

"Why does that matter?"

"I dunno. . .I just expected a princess to look more. . .well, regal."

Leia looked down at her choice of clothing. Han had a point, but she wasn't about to admit it.

"Alright, Kid. You've had your fun, now quit kiddin' around," said Han after a moment.

Leia scowled. "I'm _not_ kidding."

The two of them stared eachother down. Han squinted, waiting for Leia to give in and admit she was joking. But she didn't back down.

"Are you serious?" Han finally asked dubiously.

Leia nodded firmly. " _Yes_."

The expression on Han's face was more or less unreadable. Brow furrowed and lips slightly parted in disbelief, he tilted his head at Leia, clearly debating whether to believe her or not.

He deadpanned, "You look like a nine year old farm girl."

"My father says I'm an exception," Leia stated proudly. Han only chuckled.

"What?" she asked, cocking her head to one side.

"I'm not sure he meant that as a good thing, Sweetheart."

"First of all, don't _ever_ call me that again, and second, I'm an exception to royalty! Whether it's good or bad, I was pretty much born that way."

"Huh. Now that _that's_ outta the way, can you just tell me where you're from already? It'd make this whole deal a lot easier."

"No."

"Would it help if I said please?"

"No!"

"C'mon, Your Worship! Stop making things harder than they should be!"

"NO!"

Han put his head in his hands and rubbed his temples. He looked exhausted with her.

"Look, I'm gonna level with you, Kid. _You_ don't wanna go home, and it's _my_ duty to take you there. One of us has to break eventually, alright?"

Leia considered his words, feigning thoughtfulness as she looked at the ceiling.

"Well, good luck. We both know that I'm not going back home, so you have no choice but to bring me along."

"No way, Princess. Where we're going is no place for a girl like you."

"Oh really? Prove it." Leia was enjoying this way too much.

"How?"

"Tell me where we're headed, and _I'll_ decide if it's no place for me."

"Why should I?"

"Because then I might change my mind about going home." Leia grinned smugly.

She could tell that Han was cornered. He had no choice.

"Fine. We're headed to Tatooine. But—"

"Oh. Great! I've always wanted to go to Tatooine!"

"You don't even know where it is, do you?"

Leia shook her head and looked away after a second. Han rolled his eyes.

"Fine. That's just great. I'm headed to Tatooine, and with a Princess aboard, no less!"

"Well _I'm_ not the one that locked someone in their cargo hold!"

"Actually, Your Worship, you did something way worse! You ran away from home, stowed away on _my_ ship, and now you're sayin' you don't wanna go back! Why is that?!"

Temporarily out of ammunition, Leia looked at her feet and didn't respond.

How could she tell him everything  
going on? Prior to most people's assumptions, the life of royalty wasn't all relaxation and luxury. Leia was being forced into love at an early age, and there was nothing she could do about it. It was beyond just _annoying_ her — she was infuriated with her aunts. And her father, the _last_ person she'd expect to let her down, wasn't taking her side. At least, not verbally.

She knew her motives, but how was she supposed to tell _Han_? This was a random boy who was incredibly mature for his age and happened to own the ship she stowed away on! He wasn't her _friend_ , and he would never be.

It was a shame considering how cute he was. . .

Leia frowned and shook her head  
furiously. Where did _that_ thought come from? This guy? _Cute?_ She needed serious help — the stress must be getting to her.

"Hello? Anyone home?" Han said, waving a hand in front of her face. Leia looked up quickly as if just remembering he was still there.

Han wondered why she had spaced out, but didn't say anything else about it, because Leia's face had turned an interesting shade of red.

"Oh, right. Sorry. I. . .I just. . .just don't _want_ to go home, all right? It's really none of your business," Leia finalized, crossing her arms over her chest.

"None of my business? Huh. If I were royalty, I would _never_ leave. To sit around all day and be waited on hand and foot? That would be the life."

"That's _NOT_ the life, okay?!" Leia fired back. "I get up every day to be dressed up by my aunts and forced into doing stupid things that are for grown ups! Go to banquets! Make speeches! Meet _boys_! I ran away because they're forcing me to go meet up with guys so I can eventually pick one to _marry!_ I'm THIRTEEN! Do you think I want to be thinking about _marriage?!_ "

This time, Han _did_ look taken aback. His blank stare indicated that he was definitely stunned. For possibly the first time in his life, Han Solo was at a loss for words.

The weight of Leia's outburst weighed down on him, putting an odd feeling in his stomach. It seemed that this girl _wasn't_ kidding.

Leia's eyes never left his, and her fiery gaze made Han _want_ to look away. But something stopped him from doing it. Instead, he spoke.

"Oh. Uh. . .gee, I'm sorry to hear that, Kid. So. . .that's why you ran off?"

"No, not exactly. I mean, _yeah_ , that's why. But I guess. . .I don't know. I guess I wanted to have some kind of. . . _control_ over my own life. It's nice to know that I can do what I want now, without someone demanding perfection of me. . .you know?"

Han nodded silently and thought for a moment.

He had little experience with royalty, but this girl was different. She was spunky, that's for sure. But there was something else.

Maybe Han could relate to the Princess more than either of them cared to admit. Their lives were polar opposites, but Han could look at Leia and see part of himself.

They both wanted freedom. Adventure. An escape from the unoriginal mold that general society tried to put them in.

Yeah. Han knew a thing or two about feeling trapped. If this princess wanted the same thing he did, maybe she was alright after all.

And on a completely unrelated note, she was kind of pretty.

 _Oh._

He had not been expecting any of these developments.

How could he bring her back home _now_? She pretty much had him convinced to see things her way.

When he looked into her chocolate brown eyes, he saw things that had often appeared in his own. She was taking a huge risk here. He couldn't help but feel sympathetic, whether it was his nature or not.

"Okay, fine," he said, if not a bit resignedly. Leia looked puzzled.

"Fine what?"

"Fine, you can come with me."

 **A/N: WOOHOOOO another chapter is up! Whaddya think? Good? Bad? Okay? Horrible? Awesome? Let me know by** ** _commenting_** **down below! I have over thirty reads on this story and very few comments (but thank you to the people who commented!). Just a little reminder that comments literally make my day, because then I know you guys like what I'm writing! I can take constructive criticism, so you can also comment stuff like that! :)**  
 **Anyway, as a quick recap, Han had his chat with Leia and broke first, lol. So now they're headed to Tatooine. For what, you ask? You'll have to wait to find out! ;)**  
 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and thanks for reading!**  
 **-Lia**


	7. Chapter 7: Truce

"Wait, hang on. You're letting me come with?" Leia nearly squealed with excitement.

She was hoping that he'd give in, but she didn't actually _believe_ that he would.

Han only frowned and said, "Yeah, well, only 'cause we're too far away from Alderaan to turn back now."

"Oh, okay. Well—" Leia cut off. She took a moment to pause and think.

What had Han just said? That "Alderaan was too far away"?

The Princess's eyes widened with shock and recognition.

"Wait! What makes you think I'm from Alderaan?!" she exclaimed, hoping she sounded at least halfway convincing.

"Nice try, Your Highness. I figured it out about five minutes ago."

"But _how_?"

"Kid, it's the only planet we landed on since we left Coruscant. We would've found you if you had hopped on before that," Han said with a smile. "So. Admit it. You're from Alderaan?"

Leia shifted her eyes nervously from left to right. She had two options.

Option A: Lie about it and make a believable excuse (she was getting good at those), or. . .

Option B: Admit the truth and risk being brought home.

 _Who am I trying to kid? He already knows the truth._

There was no point in denying what Han already knew to be true, so Leia nodded. . .but not without shooting him a deadly glare.

"Fine, you got me. I'm from Alderaan," Leia said, throwing her hands in the air, still glaring at him.

"That's what I thought. And that means. . .Han trailed off in disbelief.

"You—are you _the_ Princess of Alderaan?!"

Slightly concerned about where this was going, Leia nodded her head cautiously. Han let out a long breath.

He ran his fingers through his hair and looked at her with almost a scared look on his face. Leia picked up on it right away.

"What? What did I do now?" she asked, frowning in bewilderment. Why did he look _afraid_? She wasn't that threatening, was she? If anything, _she_ should be afraid of _him._

"You just put me in one of the worst positions so far, Princess."

"What? Why?"

"If somebody sees you with me, that. . .won't be good."

"How come? Nobody really knows me. Well, that's a lie. People do know _of_ me, but why should it matter? I doubt everyone on Tatooine will recognize me."

At that, Han leaned against one of the bigger crates and sighed.

How was he supposed to explain this to her? She didn't need to know his _history_ with crime. He needed her to really _trust_ him, not freak out and disintegrate the fragile foundations of trust they already had.

"Han? Hello?" Leia said, jumping up to wave a hand in front of his face like he had done to her earlier. "Still there?"

"Oh, yeah," he said, shaking himself out of his daze. "I, uh. . .I guess it's time you found out."

This was concerning to Leia.

"Find out _what_?"

"You won't want anyone to see you with me because. . .'cause. . ."

"Because _WHY?!_ " Leia interrupted, finally out of patience and becoming panicked.

"Because I have a _record,_ okay? I'm not exactly the most respected person in the galaxy!"

Leia cocked an eyebrow in mock surprise. She was beyond annoyed that she'd been worried for nothing.

"Oh, really? I hadn't noticed. The shaggy appearance and junky ship gave absolutely _nothing_ away."

Han immediately detected the sarcasm filling her voice. As an experienced sarcastic person himself, he could somewhat appreciate someone else devoted to the art. This girl was full of surprises.

Han didn't, however, process Leia's full sentence until several seconds later.

"Wait. . .hang on, Kid. You _knew_? And yet you boarded my ship? You look like you're smarter than that."

"True. I didn't know about that when I saw the ship, and I still didn't know when I came aboard. But I saw you that night. . .and you didn't really look like you belonged on Alderaan. Then, also that night, I slept behind one of the crates over here, and it smelled weird. It kind of kept me up for a _long time_ , so I pried the top off. . .and there's something pretty bad in there."

"And what's that?"

"Illegal spice, Han." Leia rolled her eyes. "What respected person carries illegal spice aboard their ship?"

"I don't know — you tell _me_."

"It's not really funny, Flyboy. I _could_ report that."

Han fell silent after Leia's last remark. Taking it as her go-ahead, she continued.

"Anyway, I figured that you didn't just have it _lying around_ , so you must have either stolen it, or someone gave it to you. Then, this morning, I searched your ship on the HoloNet. It's pretty well known, actually. It's a YT thirteen hundred Corellian freighter. It's called the _Millennium Falcon_ , right?"

Han's mouth fell open. How had she figured all this out so quickly? She was more thorough than he'd thought.

"Uh, well, yeah. That's right."

"It apparently made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs, I think. So, tell me. How is that even possible? A parsec is a unit of _distance_. How could a ship finish a race in _less_ than how long the race was?"

Han smiled proudly and said, "Trade secret, Your Worship."

"Right. That's what I thought. You've obviously had modifications done to the ship. That means it would be equipped to fly extremely fast, and apparently able to calculate different routes. What does that tell us about your ship?"

"That its pilot is amazingly talented?"

"No. It tells us that the only circumstances where a normal guy and his ship need to fly that fast is when you're trying to avoid trouble. Then, if you look at the inside of the ship, you obviously figure out that you _live_ here. This place is a mess."

Before Han could make a decent comment, Leia held up a hand

"Hang on, I'm not done yet," she said. "To recap, this ship has special modifications for irregularly fast speeds, increased maneuverability, and excess weaponry. You obviously live and sleep in the ship, telling me that you're constantly on the move. The crates indicate that you have _multiple things_ that you stole, and the ship is a freighter. Wanna hear my conclusion?"

"Not really, no."

"Too bad. You're a smuggler."

Han's eyes shifted around the room and looked everywhere but at Leia. The Princess smiled victoriously at her accurate labeling. It had taken her an appalling amount of time to compile all that information.

"Admit it, Han. You're a smuggler!" Leia laughed, failing to hide her amusement.

He finally looked at her, but only for a split second.

"Yeah. That's right, Kid."

"What? What's that look for?"

"Now you're probably gonna turn me in, right? Tell your dad? Alert the authorities?"

A look of absolute confusion spread across Leia's face. Why did he think she was going to. . .

"Ohhhh, I see. You think I'm gonna tell someone to arrest you for smuggling things. You don't have to worry about that." Leia waved a dismissive hand.

"What do you mean?" Han said, looking up.

"What you do for a living is none of my business. I'm only here to get dropped off somewhere else. I told myself that I wouldn't get involved with anything that doesn't concern me, and I meant it. You go ahead and smuggle your life away for all I care. But I won't be telling anyone."

Han's eyes widened, but he managed to crack a genuine smile.

"Thanks, Kid."

"Anytime. Now where did you say we were headed?"

"That would be Tatooine."

"What's it like?" asked Leia, imagining all kinds of beautiful landscapes and interesting people.

Han laughed as he said, "If I told you, you'd wanna turn around. Sit tight. I'll let you know when we get there."

Before he exited, Han held his hand out for Leia to shake.

"Never did catch _your_ name," Han said, grinning.

"Leia," she said, accepting the hand with a smile of her own.

"Welcome aboard the _Millennium Falcon_ , Leia."

With that, Han turned on his heel and exited the cargo room. This time, though, he left the door open.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _I know it's the same day, but I never heard a rule about journaling only once a day, so. . ._

 _Han did come in here, and we did have a chat. But it was much less. . .intense than I thought it was going to be. I thought he'd INSIST that I go home, but he was actually kind of. . .understanding. It shocked me, because he doesn't look like the most compassionate person on the outside._

 _Yet, he doesn't seem all that bad. I mean, he's pretty annoying sometimes. But I can deal with that. We're a lot alike, when you think about it._

 _I have no idea when we'll reach this place called "Tatooine", but I hope it's soon. I also hope that Han lets me eat something now. My stomach feels hollow, and I'm almost 100 percent sure that it's not a good thing._

 _Before I go ask for food, I think I'm gonna try to take a quick nap. Yes, I'm fully aware that I should have outgrown naps when I was four or five, but I'm really tired. Maybe later I can head to the cockpit and look out the window. I've never seen what hyperspace looks like!_

 _That being said, bye for now! Wish me luck on the rest of this trip._  
 _-Leia_

 **A/N: hey guys! New chapter. . .WOOHOOO. There's a lot of dialogue in these last couple chapters, so sorry about that. Haha writing Han's character is so weird for me. I'm used to writing from a girls perspective, or a girls mindset.**

 **I hope you liked this chapter! Who else feels that budding romance between Han and Leia (haha jk. Kinda.)?! That's partially why I made Han only 15 years old. Can you imagine a 13 year old and a 23 year old falling in love? Yeah, me neither.**

 **Leave a comment letting me know your ideas, thoughts or opinions, and have an awesome day/night!**  
 **-Lia**  
 **(P.S. My bro made a fanfic for Ninjago, and he wanted me to give him a little shoutout. So go check him out (and leave a comment) if you're into that :)**  
 **Okay byeeeee!)**


	8. Chapter 8: The Gift

_Two days later_

Leia was sitting lazily in the cargo room that she had learned to call her temporary home. She had changed her clothes by now, and she wore a light blue tunic over brown leggings.

The last couple days had been fairly uneventful, but she had at least showered and ate something. What she had eaten was utterly unrecognizable, but it didn't matter to her at this point. . .which was saying a lot.

Han hadn't really said much else about their destination, nor anything about _himself._ Frankly, Leia was quite curious about the young pilot's past.

What had driven him to become a smuggler? Where was he from?

She guessed that the stripe down his pants meant something significant, but the Princess didn't have much knowledge about such things.

Leia groaned out of uncharacteristic boredom.

 _How much longer until we reach Tatooine?_

Han hadn't given her any idea as to how long it would take to get there. Yesterday, Leia had asked, "Are we there yet?" and Han had glared actual daggers at her. So she didn't ask again.

Leia still had much to figure out about this man. Well, technically, he wasn't a man just yet. He only looked a few years older than Leia, so what was he?

A boy? No, that didn't sound right either. A. . .pilot? Well, yes, he was a pilot. But that seemed a little informal.

A smuggler? Once again, yes, he was. But that seemed even worse than "pilot".

Young pilot? That sounded okay, but still not what Leia was looking for.

Whatever. She'd just call him Han.

The Princess hopped off of the crate she was sitting on and started walking towards the room's exit. Her original plan was to head to the cockpit, but she suddenly realized that she may or may not run into that Wookiee that Han called his "co-pilot".

In all honesty, Leia was slightly. . .well, slightly _terrified_ of the large creature. Of course, she knew it must be friendly if Han trusted it. Yet, she also knew it could be dangerous for the same reason.

Even though Leia had only known the pilot for a couple days, she was slowly starting to find out what made him tick. . .and also what made him incredibly irritated.

Leia was additionally surprised to find out that she could make him laugh and also turn red with anger within mere minutes of each other. She hadn't, however, decided to test the theory further. Honestly, he could do the same to her, and that was always embarrassing.

Besides — Leia did definitely want to learn more about Han. If someone would have asked her why, though. . .she wouldn't have had a decent answer. Not one she'd be willing to just outright admit.

Leia slid the cargo room door open and slunk down one of the many halls of the _Millennium Falcon_. Did Leia question the ship's name? Yes. Was she brave enough to ask Han? No. He seemed to really take extreme pride in the vessel.

There was a chance that he built it himself (that would explain his inexplicable attachment to it), but that seemed unlikely considering his excessive history in being a con artist.

He probably tricked someone into selling it to him.

Leia smiled as she remembered her elaborate estimation of Han's "career". The whole theory had taken her the longest time to come up with, and she was immensely proud of the result.

She had been right, obviously.

Her eyes narrowed when she thought of the illegal spice that still kept her away from sleep. A mental note was written in her mind to move that crate _far away_ from her sleeping area. For all she knew, that stuff could cause hallucinations or something.

Moving on, Leia decided to just risk it and _hope_ the Wookiee wasn't around. She wanted to take a peek at hyperspace — that was all. Then she'd leave and return to the cargo area.

Her mind made up, the Princess approached the cockpit door and slid it open. There, sitting in the pilot's chair, was Han.

Leia visibly relaxed when she didn't see Chewbacca anywhere near, but Han wasn't much better. Unlike him, Leia was making an actual _effort_ to be friendly. Unfortunately, Han didn't make "friendly" an easy thing to be. Not all the time, anyway. He was obnoxiously unpredictable.

The young girl was about to turn around and exit the cockpit to avoid any conflict, but Han spun around in his chair. His hazel eyes didn't look surprised, but they did look. . .curious? Leia couldn't exactly pinpoint the feeling his eyes were broadcasting. Looking at them was nice, though.

"So, what brings you here, Princess?" Han asked with an impatient tone.

"Nothing, really. I just wanted to. . .I wanted to see hyperspace, that's all."

"You've never seen a hyperspace view before?"

"No."

"Why's that?"

"I. . .uh. . .I haven't really been offplanet before, so. . ."

Han had to refrain from outright gasping. She had never been off of her own planet? What kind of a life was that?

To sit all day everyday on the same planet. . .the same place. . .the same people. Han could barely imagine life in one place. His nature had become slightly nomadic — he stayed in one place a few days, then moved on to another, and the cycle continued. She had never been _offplanet_ before!

No _wonder_ the poor girl was so restless.

" _What?!_ " Han finally managed to gasp out. Leia hung her head for a few seconds, as if she were ashamed of her confession.

"You heard me. I've never been offplanet! It's not my fault, all right?"

"Well then who's fault _is_ it?"

"Oh, I don't know. Probably my father's, but I'm sure my aunts had some part in it."

"Aunts?"

"Yeah, my father's sisters. There's three of them, and their only goal in life is the make me miserable. I thought I mentioned them before."

Han looked away. Clearly, he had underestimated the royal life. Leia _had_ mentioned her aunts before, but he didn't think they sounded evil or anything. Why would someone's own aunts want to make them miserable?

"Why is that?" he asked, deciding to speak his mind.

Leia shrugged, wrapping her arms around her midsection.

"I don't know. I never _have_ known. I suppose they don't _mean_ to annoy me, but they must surely see that I'm not happy."

"Why don't you _do_ something about it?"

"I _have!_ I ran away! And now I'm here, and they can't bother me anymore. End of story." Her defensive tone had returned.

"So," Han said, looking at the ceiling, "don't you think that's a little. . .I don't know, _extreme_?"

"No! Considering what they had planned, what I did was _passive!_ " Leia shouted.

Han didn't flinch, yet Leia immediately felt bad.

"Sorry. But it's true; I could've done something much worse. . ." Leia trailed off and looked away, apparently lost on another train of thought.

"Like what?" the pilot asked with caution.

Leia sighed, plopped down in the copilot's chair, and avoided eye contact. She had already said too much.

 _Oh gosh. My parents are going to kill me if they find out that I told someone. . ._

Han tried again.

"What could be worse than running away to another planet with a stranger?"

This time, Leia turned her head to stare right into his eyes.

 _No no no, don't say it._

"I could've used my gift."

Han blinked in confusion. Her "gift"? What gift? Why did it sound so cryptic?

"What do you mean by that, Kid?"

"Don't worry about it. I've already said too much."

With that, Leia hurriedly stood up and dashed out of the cockpit, saying, "Call me when it's time for dinner!"

Han was left sitting dumbfounded in the cockpit. He pondered her words.

 _Gift._ What could she mean by that? Was it a physical object of a gift? Or was it. . .a _talent_ kind of gift?

He willed himself to forget she ever mentioned it. And yet. . .something in the back of his mind was nagging him to question the Princess further. _Gift._

 **~•~**

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well that went well. Just kidding. It actually went horribly wrong!_

 _I finally worked up enough nerve to venture to the cockpit again, but that annoying PILOT was in there! So of course he began chattering, and he seemed awfully interested in me — more specifically, why I left Alderaan._

 _Obviously, I didn't say anything. If my memory serves me correctly, I already told him why I left. Why he'd be further interested is beyond me._

 _Anyway, he ended up asking me what was worse that running away. The truth is, I definitely could've done something much worse. To anyone else, it would seem mild. I guess. But to my family, it would be outright unacceptable._

 _I accidentally told Han that I could've used my. . .gift. What is my gift, you ask?_

 _I really shouldn't speak of it here. At least, not right now. I don't trust this place. Han could sneak in and read this._

 _But the point is, I could've used my gift and got myself into much deeper trouble. Maybe I'll explain myself next time I write. Maybe, and maybe not. It all depends on whether Flyboy gets nosy._

 _Goodbye for now. . ._

 _-Leia_

 **A/N: EEEEEEP! Another chapter is up! What did you think? Love it? Hate it? Let me know :)**  
 **Leia has a special gift, hehe. Any guesses as to what it is? ;)**  
 **I hope you enjoyed that chapter! It took me a LONG time to write, lol.**  
 **Also, remember that little shootout I gave my brother? Yeah. I accidentally didn't actually tell you his USERNAME. Silly me *embarassed grin***  
 **His username is nickservantes10** **, so go check out his story if u want. I happen to think it's kinda cool... *wink wink***  
 **Okay, have a great day/night!**  
 **-Lia**


	9. Chapter 9: Nerf Herder

**Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well, this is day. . .four (?) of my trip through space with a smuggler and a Wookiee. Now_ ** _that's_** _a sentence I never thought I'd say._

 _I probably lied about the day, because I really have no idea. I lost count once we went into space. This stuff just goes on forever and ever._

 _Things have been tense since I last wrote. Han hasn't prodded further about what I said to him, and I rarely leave the cargo room now. I leave to eat and shower, but I always do it silently._

 _Han doesn't talk to me, and I don't talk to Han. It's finally balanced, I guess._

 _Last night (the last time I fell asleep —day and night doesn't exist in space), I slept only about an hour or so. I was thinking about where we're going._

 _Han called it "Tatooine", and I can't say I've ever heard of it before. My parents never mentioned it, I never heard of it in school, and yet. . .I kind of feel compelled to GO there. Is that odd? I kind of think it is. After all, I've never HEARD of it._

 _I could ask Han about the planet, but I'm seriously debating whether he'll talk to me or not. Not that I care or anything. I'm just stating fact, that's all. His opinion means nothing. At all._

 _Ugh._

 _I guess now would be a good time to write about a topic I CAN'T talk about: Han._

 _I don't know his last name, but I don't_ ** _need_** _to know. However, I'm still trying to figure out what it is about him that makes me feel weird._

 _Whenever he looks at me, I get this indescribable feeling deep down. Now, I'm no expert on this. . .but all facts point to a very disturbing conclusion: I, Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan, might think this pilot is. . .sort of. . .kind of. . .maybe. . .cute._

 _Now wait before you judge me! I can't control how I feel! I'm thirteen! NO teenage girl can control how they feel (at least that's what my mother says)!_

 _Is all of this true? Yes! But there's not one single thing that I can do to change it! He's too. . .oh, I doubt there's a word for it. Whenever he looks at me. . .with that cocky half-grin. . .and those eyes. . .I think he has really nice eyes._

 _UGH. Who have I become? I wasn't trained for this! I'm so confused!_

 _I feel so. . .awkward and vulnerable. . .and when he looks at me, I can feel something warm creeping up my cheeks or something. . ._

 _I need to remind myself why I'm here, and who I left behind. I can't afford to get all entranced by this scruffy looking pilot who smuggles illegal things across the galaxy!_

 _Now that that's off my chest, I think I'll go inquire more about Tatooine._

 _-Leia_

The Princess slid her journal back into her leather satchel and stood up from her crisscossed position.

Before she left the room, she quickly threw her mess of curly hair into a sloppy braid.

To be honest, Leia had never truly liked her curly hair. Her mother didn't have curls, nor her father. So who in the worlds did she inherit curly hair from?

Leia shook her head to clear it.

 _This isn't a time to think about hair, Leia._

The young girl moved to open the door, but before she could, an explosion noise could be heard coming from somewhere in the ship.

Unsure if she should proceed, Leia pressed her right ear to the door and listened for any more loud noises. Fortunately enough, she didn't hear any. So, she cautiously palmed the door to open it.

As soon as the door slid open, billows of thick, black smoke poured through the opening. Leia let out a startled yelp and immediately shut the door again, coughing.

"Han!" she yelled through the metal door. "What in the worlds is going on out there?!"

For several moments, there was no response. Then, the door once again slid open. This time, however, Han was standing on the other side, waving the smog away frantically.

Leia quickly ushered him in before the rapidly spreading smoke could cloud the room.

Once the door was soundly shut, Han only stood there covered head to toe in a dusty, black substance like soot. Leia had to loudly clear her throat to indicate the current situation. When that didn't work, she decided to be straightforward.

"Han. What's going on? What happened?"

The young pilot looked up from his crouched, hands-on-knees position and let out a breath.

"Nothin' happened, Kid. One of the pipes had a leak, and I tried to fix it."

"How'd that work out for you?"

"Not good. That lead to the hyperdrive having a malfunction, which I also tried to fix."

"And how'd _that_ work out for you?"

"Well, does it _look_ like things went well?"

"Not really. But what _happened_?"

"Ahhh, let's just say we need a new part for the hyperdrive. We'll just leave it at that, Princess."

Leia rolled her eyes and gestured to the door.

"And what about all the smoke spreading throughout the ship? It's not safe to breathe that."

"That's the thing, isn't it? Yeah, you might wanna wait here until I can clear that up."

"Oh," she simply replied, still trying to process what was going on. Han made a move to leave the room, but she stopped him with a hand on his arm.

Han turned around with a stunned expression on his tanned face. His eyes travelled to the hand on his arm, and then looked at Leia.

" _Yeah?_ " he asked, shaking off her hand, his eyebrow raised.

"I was actually wondering if I could ask you a few questions."

He raised the other eyebrow. "Like what?"

"Like about the planet we're going to."

Han's face betrayed no sign of what was going through his head, but his voice did.

"You don't wanna know anything about that wasteland. Trust me."

Leia cocked her head slightly to the left and squinted.

What was he _talking_ about? Of _course_ she wanted to know about Tatooine! That's why she asked! What was so horrible about that planet?

"Wasteland?" she asked emphatically. "Why do you associate that word with a planet? Full of _people_?"

"'Cause that's what it is. Tatooine doesn't have a lot of. . .say, intelligent life. It's full of gamblers, smugglers, crime lords. . .all sorts of scum."

"You would know, wouldn't you?" Leia said blandly.

Han shot her a sharp glare before retorting, "Very funny. You think _I'm_ bad? Try staying on Tatooine for a day. It's no place for a Princess."

"Well, it's not like I _act_ like a Princess! Doesn't that count for something? I can take it. Trust me."

Han didn't buy it for a second.

"Nice try. I'll probably have you stay onboard with Chewie. My job is to return you safely home, not get you kidnapped or killed. Or worse."

"Hey, no one will know it's me. I thought you said there was hardly any intelligent life on. . .Tatoo. . .ine. . ." Leia stopped mid-sentence.

She turned over the words Han had just spoken. Sudden realization flooded Leia's subconscious and she immediately lashed out at Han.

"Hey, _hang on._ You said you wouldn't take me home! You said I could come with you!"

Han backed up with his hands spread innocently in front of him.

"Now hang on, Princess. I can't just have you parading around the galaxy on your own! You have a family, for crying out loud! I can't just dump you off at the nearest joint I come across!"

Leia slowly began backing up. Han watched her closely as she picked up her satchel. Then, she said, "I thought I could trust you! We had a _deal. I_ don't interfere with _your_ life choices, and you don't mess with _mine_!"

"Would you just—"

"Wait, that's right. You're just a. . .stuck up. . .half-witted. . .scruffy looking. . .NERF HERDER!"

With that, she turned and bolted from the room out into the smoggy hallway.

Han was left standing there not knowing exactly what to think.  
He was feeling pretty lousy about the whole thing.

But a princess? And a guy like him? It was never gonna happen. He had to get her home and set everything straight eventually — her her sake _and_ his.

Han stomped out of the room, grumbling, "Nerd herder. Pssh. Where'd she come up with that?"

 **A/N: Heyyy guys! Sorry it took a while to update- I promise I'm alive!**  
 **I hope you liked the chapter! If you did, as always, leave a comment! :)**  
 **And one little thing real quick: GUYS. I have 100+ views! You guys rock :')**  
 **So Leia asked about Tatooine, and look where that got her. Tsk tsk, huh? Also, if any of you were wondering...yeahhhh there may or may not be a little bitty teeny weeny bit of romance between Han and Leia...but not yet- don't get ahead of yo selves 0_O**  
 **In the next chapter, Han and Leia will reach Tatooine! YAYY!**  
 **Also- a little quick side note. Tomorrow morning, I leave for a five day summer camp. There are no electronics allowed, so I will virtually disappear off the face of the earth for five days. DONT WORRY- I'll be back to updating after that. And then next Sunday, my family leaves for a vacation, so there may not be as MANY updates, but they'll happen. Okay.**  
 **Anyway, thanks for reading!**  
 **-Lia**


	10. Chapter 10: One Girl, Two Suns

The next day, Leia woke up from her curled up position on the main hold's floor. That was where she had been hiding since her harsh words with Han.

Leia smiled faintly as she thought about how she had actually called Han a. . .a. . .

The Princess frowned as she tried to recall what exactly she had called Han.

A. . . _oh._ A "scruffy looking Nerf herder".

 _Right. Where did I even come up with that? I almost feel bad for Han._

 _Almost._

Technically speaking, Leia knew she couldn't just hide there forever. Now that she knew that Han had plans to take her home, she needed to start planning an escape. The last time she'd "escaped" from somewhere was when Leia had run away from home. That, however, wasn't exactly planned.

The thought had entered her mind, she had taken it, and eventually she had taken action. But it was by no means thought-out. Running away had definitely been a spur of the moment idea. And, now that she thought about it, it was beginning to seem kind of. . .drastic.

Unfortunately, the time for changing her mind had long since passed. The only thing Leia could do now was make things up as she went, hoping events would work out in her favor.

The only thing that was sure was that she needed to get away from Han. And _fast._

How does someone get _away_ from another person when they're both on the same ship? The solution was simple: wait until the ship landed.

From that point on, Leia really had no idea what she was going to do. It was going to be chaos.

Before she could think about the matter any longer, she heard a noise sound throughout the room — a noise that really sounded like footsteps.

Within a few more seconds, dark boots appeared in front of Leia's eyes. It didn't take her long to figure out who it was.

"Oh. Han," she said flatly, finally standing up.

"Yeah, happy to see you too. I just thought I should tell you—"

"Tell me what? Tell me that you're gonna betray me? That you broke your promise? That you're an idiot? Because in that case—"

"No, no, and _no._ I wanted to let you know that we've landed."

Immediately, Leia perked up.

"Really?! Well, why didn't you say so? What are we waiting for?" she exclaimed. The Princess jogged to the exit/entry ramp and waited for it to lower. Han came up behind her.

"Where do you think you're going?" he said, putting his hands in his pockets.

"Uh, outside? I've never been here before. You can't expect me to stay _here_ , can you?"

"Actually, Your Worship, I can. Like I said: Tatooine's cantinas and streets are no place for someone like you."

Leia scowled and placed a hand on her hip.

"Oh, really? But I can hitch a ride on a smuggler ship, can't I? Oh, wait. You would know that already."

"Hey, that was _your_ decision! I didn't do anything! You deliberately stowed away on my ship!"

"That's right, which is why I can handle whatever Tatooine has to offer."

"No," Han replied, shaking his head.  
"Nice try. You'll be staying here with Chewie."

"What? With _him_? I can't!"

"Oh, _right_. Why not?"

Leia mumbled something incoherent.

"What was that?" Han asked, leaning closer.

"Because he freaks me out!" she yelled.  
Han took a step back.

"Freaks you out? Are you kidding me? It's _Chewie._ He's not _scary_."

"Maybe not to you! You spend every waking moment with him! I don't trust him."

"You don't — _why?_ "

"Because! I don't even completely trust _you._ You can't expect me to stay here _and_ trust the Wookiee."

Han only gaped silently while Leia stood firm.

When Leia finally accepted that Han wasn't going to budge, she came up with a fast plan.

 _I really need to think things through more. Here goes nothing._

"You know what, Han? You're right. I think I'll just stay here."

The pilot frowned at her sudden change of heart. Leia's voice had become sugary sweet all of a sudden. That couldn't be good.

He didn't fully believe that she wasn't going to try something drastic. Han had only known her for a few days, but she had a lot of spirit. If she was left alone, she'd probably run off. Or worse: _take off,_ as in "fly the ship".

"Okay," Han said hesitantly. "You wait here. I'll go tell Chewie that you'll be staying onboard with him."

"Sure thing," Leia nodded. "I'll wait here." A cheerful smile.

 _Too_ cheerful.

Han slowly began to walk backwards into the hallway. Occasionally, he would pause to glance at Leia to make sure she was actually staying there.

The Princess raised an eyebrow and made a "shoo!" motion with her hands.

Finally, Han left the area, leaving Leia alone.

Immediately, she darted away with intentions on finding the cockpit.

By some miracle, she managed to get there in record speed. She made her way to the front control board.

 _What would it be? A lever? A button?_

Leia scanned the numerous controls for something that would lower the ramp. To her, all the flashing lights and buttons looked very similar.

She calmed down and took a second to think. She'd seen Han work these controls a few times; she just needed to find the distant memories and pull them out.

Leia closed her eyes and envisioned herself finding the control. To her surprise (and also terrific delight), an image popped into her mind. In it, she walked to the controls covering the wall and pushed a large black button.

Her eyes opened, and she gasped.

Following her mental image, she observed the wall controls. Brown eyes found the button, and small fingers pushed it without hesitation.

Escaping was a _rush._

A noise was heard from the other side of the ship. Leia knew it must be the ramp lowering. With that, she took off down the hall again.

She reached the ramp and found it lowering noisily to the ground. Before it was even all the way down, Leia stood on the partially vertical ramp and began scrambling out of the ship.

The sight outside was something Leia had never seen before in her life.

It was _nothing_ like she'd imagined.

Her feet sunk down into a warm, grainy substance.

 _Sand._

She had heard about sand before, but it was an entirely different experience to _touch_ it.

Leia tilted her head to look at the sky. It was a crisp, clear blue, with not a cloud to be seen.

Then she saw the Suns. Two massive, bright, red Suns shone in the sky like glowing eyes. One was slightly higher than the other, and they let off a light so intense that Leia was already panting from the heat.

Not too far in the distance, Leia could see some kind of town. . .at least, it _looked_ like a town. For all she knew, it could be more sand dunes — the desert stretched on for miles in every direction.

Regardless, she wanted to _get away_ from the _Millennium Falcon_ and its cocky pilot. Therefore, Leia began running in a steady sprint towards the town.

At one point, she almost looked back at the ship she left behind. She almost took one more glance at the ship that Han lived on. Maybe she was wary of what she might find in the town, or maybe she would just miss Han.

 _No, Leia. Don't think like that. You won't miss him. You barely even knew him. It's not like you wanted to get to know him better, right? Right._

She continued until she reached the peak of another gigantic sand dune. The town was just a little further. . .she could make it if she ran. Han could be running for her, after all. The faster she reached civilization the better.

Leia picked up the pace, breathing heavily.

Meanwhile, on the _Falcon_ , Han was standing with his head in his hands at the lowered ramp.

He had practically _allowed_ her to run away.

 _How could you be so STUPID, Solo? You just lost a PRINCESS. Now what?_

He knew, obviously, that he couldn't just let her roam the streets of Tatooine. She was only a few years younger than himself, but Han wasn't exactly fond of the "abandon the runaway" idea. She had a family out there somewhere that was most likely worried out of their minds for her.

Tatooine was full of scum in its entirety. She was an easy target for any bounty hunters and/or dangerous civilians. She'd end up starving or dying of thirst.

All good reasons for him to go after her. But maybe Han had another reason. A more _personal_ reason. A reason that he wasn't going to admit or acknowledge.

"Chewie, let's go!" he called into the ship's interior.

Once his copilot had joined him, they both started out into the unforgiving desert of Tatooine.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Now I've REALLY done it. You thought running away from home was bad? How about running away from home AND from the ship you stowed away on?!_

 _That's right. Princess Leia's at it again. I couldn't stand to be on that ship any longer. So, I fooled Han, lowered the ramp, left the ship, and ran into the seemingly endless desert of this planet called Tatooine._

 _I'm currently sitting behind a large rock near the town that I spotted earlier. I don't feel comfortable going into the town at night, so I decided to lay low right here for now. Since the Suns (TWO OF THEM) set, it's not so hot._

 _Guaranteed, Han will be here first thing tomorrow to look for me. I need to find a place to hide tomorrow._

 _On the bright side, nobody will suspect me of being royalty. I'm wearing one of Han's dark blue shirts and my grey leggings. The shirt is obviously way too big for me (it might as well be a dress) and my hair is just down._

 _I think it's safe to say that no one will notice me. My hope is that I blend in._  
 _I should probably try to sleep. I have a feeling that tomorrow is gonna be a big and busy day._

 _-Leia_


	11. Chapter 11: Princess Meets Farm Boy

**A/N: Okay, so I totally forgot to add an authors note to Chapter 10...sorry about that. I finished that chapter really fast and didn't even have time to proofread it...so I also apologize for any typos or grammar mistakes you may have found. But my family is currently on vacation, and I finished Chapter 10 at the airport and wanted to publish it ASAP. As soon as I added the header picture, our flight was called. I didn't think, and I just hit "publish". Whoopsies.**  
 **Anyway, I'll probably add an authors note at the beginning AND end of future chapters, starting with this one. If you guys don't like it or just find my rambling annoying (be honest, hehe), lemme know :)**  
 **Without further delay, here's Chapter 11!**

Princess Leia awoke to a light brighter than anything she'd ever seen. It seemed to penetrate through her closed eyelids even before she was fully conscious.

Annoyed and inexplicably sweating, Leia rolled over and opened her eyes. . .only to immediately shut them again.

 _What IS that awful light?!_

Slowly, she cracked each eyelid open one at a time. The searing light flooded her senses; it was several minutes before her eyes adjusted. Finally, she blinked and saw where she was.

 _Oh, right. I'm on that desert planet. No WONDER. Might as well sleep in an oven._

By the time Leia was up and no longer blinded, Tatooine's twin Suns were high in the sky, signaling afternoon. Or, at least, that's what Leia assumed. For all she knew, it could mean something entirely different.

She didn't really _want_ to explore this particular town, but she also didn't have much of a choice. It was either explore the town or die of dehydration.

She chose to explore the town.

In the few moments it took to reach the small sand village, Leia was already tired and hot. Sweat droplets beaded on her forehead, and her feet felt like they had weights attached to them.

She looked down to see the deep sand she was practically wading through. Her short height didn't help, either.

The village turned out to be many igloo-shaped buildings with cloaked people walking around. Leia didn't think she fit in, but she didn't stand out, either. Everyone was dusty and dull and idle.

Leia strolled slowly through the sandy streets and tried to take it all in.

The inhabitants of the town all seemed to look different. There were aliens and humans alike, not to mention droids, large animals, and numerous insectopods. Several ginormous four-legged, hairy creatures (with tusks) stomped right past Leia. She gaped at them in awe.

The Princess was feeling very cultured.

None of the civilians took any notice of Leia as she worked her way through the passing crowd. Unlike most of the people, Leia was gawking at everything and everyone. She marvled at dusty speeders that zoomed by, driven by rough-looking men. Her mouth fell open when a fight suddenly broke out near one of the vendor tents.

Nobody else took any notice.

It seemed that everyone had some sort of destination, and they didn't want to be hindered in any way — almost like they were set on autopilot.

Dozens upon dozens of species mingled amongst each other. . .and yet, there was a certain order to it all. Even though everyone was headed to a different spot, nobody bumped into anyone else. The only way Leia could describe it was "synchronized chaos".

Similar to when servants scurried around the palace, preparing the banquet hall for a party. Except this time, Leia wasn't being pressured to _do_ anything.

She felt surprisingly at ease in the swarming crowds. No one knew who she was, and no one was telling anyone what to do.

The town opened up in the center to allow space for vendors. Booths selling everything from food to spare parts lined the sides of the streets. As Leia walked by, vendors would call out to her and offer their goods or services. Most of them were alien and didn't speak Basic, so Leia would only politely shake her head and move on.

Children dressed in sandy tunics and boots were playing and chattering in foreign languages. Men with dangerous expressions and jagged scars were leaning against walls and observing the people who walked by.

Leia noticed that and made sure to avoid eye contact with them.

Eventually getting tired of walking around with no particular destination, Leia decided to actually enter a building.

A sign that said, "Live Entertainment" caught Leia's eye. Although slightly wary of what "entertainment" meant to these people, the Princess decided to give it a try. It couldn't be worse than Han's ship, right? And she could think of it as an authentic cultural experience.

She pushed through the swinging doors and was immediately repelled by the building's contents.

 _Bad idea._

At least fifty shady characters were occupying the restaurant-type joint, and they didn't look the least bit friendly. Some were terrifying aliens with large heads and wide, bulbous eyes. Others were tall, muscular men with tattoos and blasters.

Leia spotted some very skimpily dressed women with brightly colored hair, so she clapped a hand over her eyes and turned the other way.

The only thing she _didn't_ see was children of any sort. That should've been her first clue.

 _Are people looking at me now?_

A few occupants glanced lazily in her direction, but overall there was no disturbance.

Feeling some level of reassurance, Leia's eyes turned to a stage at the front of the room. Four alien creatures played an upbeat tune on some exotic-looking instruments.

A few dangerous looking people sat in booths around the room. Now that she was the only one of her kind in the area, she _did_ rather stand out. It didn't help that she wasn't moving or talking to anyone.

And people were starting to look her way now.

That should've been her second clue.

"Hey, are you gonna order something?" someone said in a skeptical tone.

Leia turned around to identify the voice. It was coming from a man behind the counter of the restaurant.

 _He must be the bartender._

Leia pointed a finger at her chest as if to say, "Are you talking to me?"

"Yeah, you! You gonna order something or not? I don't have all day."

Leia didn't have a response ready for that. It probably wasn't the wisest decision to drink anything — especially not in a place like this. She'd rather find something somewhere she trusted a little more.

"Oh, uhh. . .n—no thanks. I was actually. . .I was just about to leave."

"Then go ahead and _leave._ "

That should've been her third red flag.

"Okay, I—I will. Sorry about that," she stammered, not exactly sure what she was apologizing for.

The Princess turned on her heel and made a beeline for the doors. Leia had no more desire to stay there.

However, just as she stepped back out into blazing sunlight, someone grabbed ahold of her wrist.

Leia's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly spun around.

There stood a disgusting looking man with oily black hair and a scar across his left eye.

Leia didn't say anything — instead, she tugged at her wrist and braced her feet in the sand, which wasn't much of a foothold.

"Headed somewhere, Miss?" he asked casually.

"Actually, yes. I was just heading. . .home. Yeah. And I'd appreciate it if you'd let go. _Now._ "

The man only smiled and stepped closer.

"It's not everyday I see a girl as lovely as yourself," he said, grinning.

Now Leia began to get angry, especially considering that this man was a great deal older than herself. Was this one of those situations that she was taught about but never imagined happening? Because if so, she was in a bad spot.

"As flattering as that is, I really should be going. . ."

"So soon? We barely got to know each other." The man still hadn't let go of her wrist.

"All right, I'll say this one more time: I really _should be going._ Now if you don't let go—"

"What? What're ya gonna do? Ya gonna hit me?"

"I might! You never know! Now let me—"

The ugly man yanked on her arm and pulled her even closer. So, reacting out of self defense, and also a practiced reflex, Leia raised her other hand and landed a hard punch on the man's forehead.

He stumbled back a few steps and stared, open mouthed, at Leia.

Leia herself was momentarily stunned at what had just happened.

 _Did I just. . .PUNCH him?!_

The man regained his sanity, or perhaps lost it, and raised his own hand as if he was going to slap _her._

But before he could, someone else yelled, "HEY. Leave her alone!"

Both Leia's and the man's heads whipped around to see who was talking. It turned out to be a boy. . .a very young boy.

He didn't look much older than Leia. Shaggy, blond hair fell into his icy blue eyes. His tunic and pants were brushed with sand.

"Go home, Kid," the man growled at him.

"I don't think so," the boy laughed. "Not until you let her go."

"Why should I?"

"If you don't, I'll make sure to let _everyone_ know that the mighty _Rass_ was beaten by a thirteen year old boy — and in a speeder race, no less. I'll _do_ it."

That seemed to make the man (called Rass, apparently) consider his options. He finally growled again and pushed Leia away. She landed with a soft thud in the sand.

"Go fix a vaporater, Farm Boy." And with that, Rass left the two kids alone and stalked off and disappeared in the crowds.

At first, Leia took no notice of the boy, and was mostly interested in standing up and brushing sand off of herself. If "blending in" meant being eternally dusty, she'd pass.

Leia stood with her back facing the blond boy until she shook out her hair. In that moment, she turned around.

Chocolate brown eyes met shocking blue ones, and they seemed to freeze like that for a while. Suddenly, Leia was overcome with a new sensation and temporarily forgot how to breathe.

There was something about this boy. . .had they met before?

No. That wasn't possible. He clearly lived on Tatooine, and she did _not._

Then why did Leia feel so _weird_? Did he feel the same way?

Neither person blinked, and neither person moved. It would've been awkward if both of them weren't completely lost in thought.

Finally, the boy shook his head as if to clear it and said, "Uhh. . .hey, you alright?"

Leia, too, had to shake herself out of the sudden lapse in time. She realized that he had spoken to her.

"Oh, uh. . .uh, yeah, I'm good. Thanks for what you did, though."

The boy laughed and shook his head.

"No problem. You. . .ahhh, you seemed like you had it handled there. I didn't think you'd actually. . .ya know. . ."

Now it was Leia's turn to laugh.

"What? _Hit_ him? I didn't know either, to be honest. It just sort of _happened._ "

They both laughed in sync. When they calmed down, the boy took note of Leia's appearance.

"You're not from here, are you?" he said, gesturing at her apparel.

Leia looked down at herself and mentally slapped her forehead.

 _I look awful! And why am I wearing one of Han's SHIRTS? Ugh._

"Oh, I'm. . .yeah, you're right. I'm definitely not from here. Or anywhere _near_ here, really."

"Where _are_ you from? Well, if you don't mind me asking."

"Well. . ." Leia paused. Was it safe to tell this stranger where she was from? Was there a chance he could trace that information back to her family line? They had just met. It was really kind of a personal question, wasn't it?

 _Hmm. . ._

Yet, something told Leia she could trust this boy. He didn't seem all that threatening, and he _did_ help her out of that situation. Would it be so bad to tell him what planet she was from? She at least owed him that.

 _Why_ did she trust him? Leia didn't know. Something inside of her felt like she had known this boy her _whole life_. But that was crazy. She had only just met him.

 _Move past that. Gosh._

"So. . ." he interrupted her thoughts.

"Oh, sorry. I'm from. . .Alderaan. I'm from Alderaan." Leia spoke with confidence that she was making the right choice.

"Really? That's awfully far away from here. What're you doing on Tatooine? Not exactly the ideal vacation."

Now that was a question she _didn't_ feel comfortable answering. How could she work around the truth? She had _run away_! She couldn't tell him that!

Or. . .could she?

Before she could think, and before she could stop herself, the words left her mouth.

"Can you keep a secret?"

The boy looked a little surprised, but he didn't seem to object to the idea. Besides, he happened to be getting the same feeling as Leia, and the curiosity was enough to make him agree.

"Wow, sure! But uh, first. . .what's your name?"

"Leia. You?"

"Luke. Luke Skywalker."

 **A/N: WHOOOOAAA look who just entered the story! That's right- it's Luke, aka the long lost twin brother of LEIA! Are you excited? I'm excited :)**  
 **In the next chapter, we'll be seeing more of Han, and also a diary entry from Leia...since this one had to end on a cliffhanger, hehe.**  
 **Gonna try to publish this as SOON as I get wifi, which should be pretty soon. Apparently wifi connection isn't common in Veracruz, Mexico. What kind of a life is that?! *draws picture of wifi and cries***  
 **Well, that's that! Like I said- when I get wifi, I'll upload this chapter and check the last one. If you have any ideas for what should happen next, let me know! I'm open to constructive criticism, opinions, ideas, and READER PARTICIPATION! ;)**  
 **See ya later, gator(s)!**  
 **-Lia**


	12. Chapter 12: Secret's Out

**A/N: How'd ya like that last chapter, buddeez? Things will start escalating rather quickly from here on out. Also, due to the fact that I'm suffering from wifi withdrawal symptoms, chapters will probably be less consistent...sorry bout dat. That, and wifi is just pretty scarce in these parts so...I can't update till I have Internet. Le sigh.**  
 **Anyhoo, let's get rollin'!**

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Boy, this isn't how I thought this day was gonna go. Maybe I should start from the beginning. . ._

 _I woke up this morning and temporarily didn't know where I was. It didn't take me long to remember that I was on Tatooine — I don't know of any other planets that have two Suns._

 _I had this sudden urge to explore the town, so that's what I did. I mean, it seemed like a good idea at the time._

 _Therefore, being the curious person I am, I wandered off into the village. Things went fairly well for a while, until I made the stupid STUPID choice to waltz into a. . .I don't even know what it was. . ._

"What are you doing?" Luke asked, looking over Leia's shoulder. She paused in her writing and sighed.

"I'm journaling."

"So, you have a diary?"

"Yeah, but I call it a _journal._ "

"Oh."

"Quick question — what was that restaurant I was in before?"

"Oh, that grungy place? A cantina."

"Thanks." She continued writing.

 _A cantina. That's where I was._

 _I walked into that cantina all high and mighty, but it was an awful decision, really. Everyone in there was much older than me, and they mostly looked either inappropriate or dangerous. Or BOTH. Go figure. Authentic cultural experience indeed._

 _I figured I should get out of there, so I left. But I didn't get very far, because some hideous thug stopped me on my way out._

 _Things almost got ugly when I involuntarily punched the man, but a blond boy my age stepped in._

 _It was surprising at how easily he threatened the man. Apparently, the boy has beaten the man (Rass, I think) in some races. That was enough for the man to let me go, which resulted in an awkward moment between me and the boy—_

"'The boy'?" Luke interrupted. Leia closed her eyes and groaned inwardly at the second interruption Luke had caused.

"Yeah, I was about to—"

"I have a name you know," Luke said, leaning back.

"Yes, I know, I was just getting to that. No more interruptions, _please._ "

 _—who is named Luke Skywalker. He seemed trustworthy (as far as strangers go)—_

"Hey!" Luke exclaimed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Leia turned to him with a defeated expression.

"What did I tell you about interrupting?!" she shouted.

Luke raised his hands innocently.

"Sorry," he apologized, sounding unrepentant.

 _—so I told him about my. . .situation, so to speak. Luke was surprisingly understanding and didn't call me out for disobeying parents, running away, recklessly boarding a ship, and then running off into the uncharted deserts of Tatooine. Which, now that I write it out fully, sounds a little reprimand worthy, doesn't it?_

 _Either way, Luke was understanding. I have more I'd like to say, but Luke is currently watching every word I write, not to mention interrupting every—_

"I'm not interrupting!" Luke contradicted, suddenly over Leia's shoulder once again.

Leia slowly turned her head so she was looking directly at him.

"Then what do you _think_ you're doing?"

Luke thought a moment before sheepishly looking at his feet.

Leia mumbled, "That's what I thought."

 _—other paragraph. Anyway, I feel like I can trust him. Which brings me to my next point: I'm currently sitting in the sand next to what Luke calls a "moisture vaporater". I'm still not clear on what it does, but it looks complicated._

 _The Suns are about to set. On Alderaan, we only have one Sun, and it isn't as red as this one. It's very pretty, once you set aside the "billion degrees" factor._

 _That feels weird, saying "Suns" as in plural. These people are all used to it._

 _Not sure where we're going from here, but I hope Han hasn't picked up on where I've been. Personally, I'd like to learn more about this Luke character._

As if on cue, Luke drew a short breath and was about to speak. Before he could utter another interruption, Leia sharply held up a hand to silence him.

 _Now that I've updated this journal on my wreck of a life, I think I'll answer Luke's many, apparently brooding, questions_

 _-Leia_

"Done yet?" Luke asked catiously, drumming his fingers in the sand.

"Yeah."

"So, what's this about wanting to learn more about me?"

Leia gave a light laugh and leaned back against the vaporater.

"Well, we just met this morning. Did you think I was comfortable with only knowing your name? You're still a stranger, after all."

She tactfully remembered not to mention the feeling of familiarity that he was radiating. Probably not the best ice breaker.

"You have a point, I guess."

"So. . .why don't you tell me something about yourself? Anything."

Luke hesitated a moment, but eventually agreed.

"Alright. . .my favorite color is orange, I'm thirteen years old, I live with my aunt and uncle, and. . .I've never left the planet."

"Huh. So, you've lived here your whole life?" Leia asked, feeling slightly sympathetic for the boy.

"Yeah. But from what you've told me, this is your first time off-planet too."

Leia sighed. That was definitely true. Leia had never left her own planet before, and it had always bugged her.

Whenever she would ask her Mother or Father to go with them on a trip, they would sternly object. Leia always assumed there was a reason, but she never worked up the courage to ask.

Now, when Luke mentioned it, the gears in Leia's head began turning. Why _hadn't_ she asked? Was she afraid? Did she just not care enough to mention anything? Maybe she was just raised to not question her parents' orders. Apparently, Leia thought, the obedience had left.

A younger Leia most likely wouldn't have run away. Not to another planet, at least.

"You're right. But uh. . .let's talk about something else. What does this machine do?" she asked, placing a hand on the large metal structure behind them.

"Oh, that collects moisture from the air so we can use it for water," Luke explained, sliding Leia's journal back into her satchel. "Most people here are moisture farmers. They collect water vapor, and the farmers make money off of it."

As Luke was explaining the meaning of moisture farming, Leia was intently studying the workings of the vaporater. She gingerly touched a part of the machine.

 _There definitely isn't anything like this on Alderaan._

She wondered what it would be like to live here. To know what a moisture vaporater does, and how to use it.

Meanwhile, Luke's fingers brushed against something as he was putting Leia's journal away. His first thought was to pull it out and see what it was. His second thought, however, was to leave it as to not invade someone's privacy.

Unfortunately. . .the first thought won dominance of his actions.

He took a glance up at Leia to make sure she was preoccupied, and pulled the object out of her satchel.

He gasped before he could help it, which caused Leia to look down at him. Leia's gasp was for different reasons.

"Wow," Luke breathed. "Wha—what _is_ this?"

Leia flinched when she looked at what he was holding. It was a tiara that was encrusted with many shimmering jewels.

The orange and red light of sunset reflected off of the gems and sent sparkles of light scattering in all directions. Warm tones of sunlight dazzled across the sand.

The whole scene took Luke's breath away.

"Wow," he whispered again. He then looked to Leia for an explanation.

After a few shifting glances at Luke, Leia made an "Mmm" noise that had the tone of, "How should I tell him?"

"That's. . .that's a. . .it's a. . .well, that's a tiara," she said, scratching the back of her head.

Luke seemed unaffected by the statement and only continued to stare at the small crown.

"A tiara. I've never seen one of those before. It's beautiful," he said.

He turned it over in his hands and ran his finger over the jewels.

"Yeah, well, you'll probably never see something like that on Tatooine, huh?" Leia said, attempting to draw his attention away from the tiara.

"No, not ever," Luke said. Then, he looked at Leia. "Is this. . .is this yours?"

The Princess bit her bottom lip and stayed silent. When Luke asked again, she had no choice but to answer him.

"Uh. . .yeeeeaaahhh. . .she admitted, drawing it out and looking anywhere but at Luke's eyes.

Luke frowned and held the tiara up to the light again.

"Where'd you find something like this?" he asked.

"Oh, um. . .about that. . .I didn't find it."

"Someone gave it to you?"

"You could say that, yes."

"Who? You must know some awfully rich folks, huh?"

Now Leia was starting to feel guilty. Not to mention the fact that she now had to explain that she was royalty. And that was putting it simply.

"Yeah. I mean, _no. . ._ I mean. . .ugh." Leia failed at breaking the news. She was just starting to feel _normal._ Now all that would be ruined when Luke found out she was royal. What if he treated her differently?

"Is that a yes or a no?"

"It's a. . . _I'm a princess,_ " she blurted out, instinctively holding her hands out as if Luke would attack her.

Luke didn't seem to care at first, but the words slowly sank in. Little by little, Luke's eyes got wider and wider. Leia braced herself for whatever his reaction would be.

" _WHAT?!"_

 **~•~**

Elsewhere in our story, Han Solo was tromping angrily through the small town of Mos Eisley. He was positive that this was the town Leia had headed towards, but she was nowhere to be found.

He even went so far as to ask several citizens whether they had, ". . .seen a thirteen year old girl, about _this_ high? She has brown hair, brown eyes, and was wearing an oversized shirt."

Nobody seemed to have seen her, and Han was beginning to get worried. As the Suns sank over the sand dunes for the second time since he had begun searching, Han vowed to try again tomorrow.

 _Tomorrow. I'll find her tomorrow._

 **A/N: Hiyah again! How'd ya like it? Good? Bad? Fabulous? Terrible? Lemme know in the comments :)**  
 **Hahahaha Luke is a professional interrupter. Had an easy time picking his "favorite color". He lives on a desert planet for Petes sake! What other colors has he ever SEEN? Oy.**  
 **Currently sitting at a beach in Veracruz, Mexico. Instead of frolicking in the waves and sipping some cold drink (like in the travel brochures), I'm sitting here writing fanfiction. ALL FOR YOU GUYSSSSS ;) ;)**  
 **Anyhoo, I'll let you get on with your lives now...which will hopefully consist of writing a review *wink wink***  
 **Special shoutout to HannahRachel05** **for reviewing on every chapter (I think) so far! Have an Internet cookie (::)**  
 **Okay, see ya next time!**  
 **-Lia**?


	13. Chapter 13: Unlucky and Unlikely

**A/N: Hiyah! Ahhh, we've reached Chapter 13...lucky number 13, am I right ;)**  
 **Can I start by saying this: EEEEEEE! Thank you SO MUCH for 150+ reads! That's AWESOME! I didn't even expect TWO reads when I published the first chapter! ACK you guys are the bomb XD**  
 **I've also been meaning to upload this story to FFN, but...I don't actually know how *sheepish laugh*. Does anyone here know how to do that? And can I do it from a mobile device instead of a computer? Lemme know if you have any info on that :)**  
 **Okayyy enough of my rambling. Here's Lucky 13, y'all!**

Luke was still staring at Leia with an expression somewhere between angry, shocked, confused, and excited. It was most likely all of the above.

Leia, however, was none of those things. She was mostly guilty, and maybe even the slightest bit ashamed. She knew good and well that she should've told Luke about her "heritage" right away.

"What?!" Luke exclaimed again. One of his hands went up to rake through his hair. He looked distraught.

Leia nodded solemnly, feeling equal parts relieved and ashamed.

Luke, like Han had first done, looked Leia up and down. His scrutinizing gaze made Leia more than a little prepared for what he was going to say next.

"You don't _look_ like a Princess," the boy stated suspiciously.

"I get that a lot."

"Huh. So. . .if you're a princess from Alderaan. . .you're _the_ Princess of Alderaan?!"

"That seems about right."

"Then. . .why are you on Tatooine? Like I said before, this isn't the ideal vacation spot."

"I'm not on vacation, I already told you the story — I ran away."

"You never told me _why_ you ran away."

"You'd think it's stupid." Luke wouldn't exactly be able to relate.

"No, I won't! I promise!"

"But it's a stupid reason. At least, _I_ think so."

"Tell me anyway. Please?"

Leia sighed in defeat. She tried to come up with at least one reason why she shouldn't tell him. . .but nothing came to mind. Luke was still waiting patiently, and Leia didn't want to lie to him.

"I ran away because. . .I was being forced into something I didn't want to do," she admitted.

Luke made a, "Go on. . ." motion.

Leia _really_ would rather not elaborate on the situation, but she had already told Han, so. . .

"My three aunts were trying to push me in a, uh. . .romantic situation. I thought it was unnecessary, which it _was_ , so. . .I just. . .left."

"And so you came to _Tatooine_ of all places?"

"Not on _purpose._ Han flew us here, because he needed a part for the hyperdrive or whatever. Maybe for another reason — he never really told me."

"And this _Han_ was the pilot of the ship you stowed away on?"

" _Is_ the pilot. Not _was_ the pilot. But yes."

"What made you choose _that_ ship?"

"It had its ramp lowered, so it was the easiest to board."

"Gee, that seems dangerous. It could've been a pirate ship, or a smuggler ship."

Leia winced subtly at how accurately Luke had just spoken. The boy noticed the weird look on her face.

"What? What'd I say?" he ventured.

"Nothing. . .you're just. . .pretty smart, I guess."

A look of pride swept over Luke's face, but not for long. He began to question why exactly he was suddenly so smart.

"Why am I _smart_?"

"You just. . .you guessed Han's occupation."

"Oh. Wait, what? What do you mean?"

The palm of Leia's hand smacked her forehead.

"I _mean_ that Han is a _smuggler_."

"What?!"

"But don't tell anyone! Well, you don't really know anyone you could tell. But _still._ I promised Han I'd keep it a secret."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because. . ." Leia trailed off, not really having an end to that sentence.

Why _did_ she do that? Han wasn't going to keep _her_ secret, obviously. He was planning to bring her home, for crying out loud. But the question still hung over her like a piano about to be dropped.

 _Why did I do that?_

"Uh, I just. . .I did it to be nice, alright?" Leia finally explained. "That, and what Han does for a living is none of my business."

"Not even if it's illegal?"

"That's right," Leia nodded, making it clear that she wouldn't argue the point any further.

Luke didn't seem completely satisfied with her answer, but he knew it would do no good to push her any further.

The final beams of sunset disappeared under the horizon, leaving Luke and Leia in relative darkness. An awkward silence settled upon the two, until Luke spoke up.

"So. . .do you have a place to sleep?"

"Who, me? Mmm. . .no. I'm sure I could hike back to the _Millennium Falcon_ , but that isn't ideal. Why? Did you have a place in mind?"

~•~

Luke smiled as he pulled Leia, who had her eyes closed, towards a "secret location".

"Can I open my eyes now?" Leia complained. For the third time, she tripped over a stray rock buried in the sand.

"Not yet. We're almost there!" Luke laughed. The Princess felt a tugging on her hand for a few more minutes, until they seemed to stop moving.

"Are we there yet?"

"Alllllmost. . .yes."

Leia opened her eyes and, at first, saw nothing. Once her eyes adjusted to the unnaturally dark night of Tatooine, a small, shadowy image came into focus.

Leia didn't understand what was so wonderful about it, but Luke seemed proud. So, Leia just plastered a hopefully believable smile on her face.

"Well? Whaddya think?" Luke asked. The young girl wasn't prepared for his question.

"What do I think? Uh. . .I think it looks a little unrecognizable at the moment. What. . .uh, what is it, exactly?" Leia asked sheepishly.

Luke's smile faded and was replaced by an unamused expression.

"It's my _home_ ," he replied.

Leia immediately realized that she probably just insulted him. He had trusted her enough to bring her to his _house_ , and she had just _insulted it._

That definitely went against the code of royal etiquette.

 _Whoops_.

"Oh! I'm sorry! It's. . .it's a very nice home! I love it!"

Luke wasn't impressed with the backpedaling, but he decided to let this one slide. She was from Alderaan, after all. He'd have to cut the poor girl some slack.

"Yeah. Right. Anyway, since you don't have a place to stay. . .you could stay here overnight. If you want."

"Really? Of course! Thank you!" Leia wasn't sure if they were on hugging terms yet, so she settled for a grateful smile.

Luke seemed satisfied and led her closer to his house.

As they neared the small structure, Leia began to notice the shape and size.

It was actually not that small, and the building was shaped like the structures from the town — like a sandy igloo.

It had one opening at the front and some smooth stairs to walk down.

Once they were inside, the home really opened up into a lot of different rooms. The Princess realized with amusement that the actual _home_ was all underground.

Leia's eyes roamed every object in the room, taking it all in. The floors, walls, and ceiling were all made of some sort of sandy stone, or maybe it was just plain sand — Leia couldn't tell. If it was sand, how did the get it so smooth?

Any furniture was bland and scarce. The first room the two of them entered was the kitchen (or dining room). A long, white table took up most of the space.

The two teens stopped in the middle of the kitchen.

"Well?" Luke asked, hoping for a better reaction from Leia than last time.

"Wow. It's. . .different, but I kind of like it," she answered, still looking around. "It's homey."

Suddenly, something occurred to her, and she turned to Luke.

"Where are your parents?"

"Oh, you mean my aunt and uncle? They're around here somewhere. I hope I didn't worry them by staying out so late." His tone was casual, as if it didn't matter all that much.

"Oh, that's right. You live with your aunt and uncle. Shouldn't we. . .I don't know. Shouldn't we let them know that a complete stranger is sleeping in their house?"

"There is?! Where?" Luke asked frantically. Once again, Leia had to wonder how his brain worked.

"You're looking at her," Leia replied smugly.

Luke's face took on an expression of understanding, and then one of embarrassment.

"Oh. Yeah. I knew that."

"Sure you did. But in all seriousness, we should let them know."

"Yeah, you're probably right. C'mon."

With that, Luke grabbed Leia's hand and dragged her though his house.

They stopped at another rather plain room — a living room, Leia suspected. In it, two people (a man and a woman) were sitting on a fur-covered couch, whispering to each other. They simultaneously looked up when Luke cleared his throat.

"Oh, you're back," the man said. "We were starting to get worried."

The lady turned around too. She was the first one to notice Leia.

"Luke. . .who's this?" the older woman asked, obviously confused but not sounding angry.

Luke turned to Leia and introduced her.

"This is Leia. Leia, this is Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen."

"Um. . .hi!" Leia said, giving an awkward wave. Her aunts would not have approved of such an informal greeting.

Beru and Owen shared a small look.

"I'm sorry — what did you say your name was?" Owen asked, squinting.

Leia seemed surprised.

"My name? Leia. Uh, Sir."

"Leia, huh? Hmm. What brings you here? I'm assuming you know Luke."

Now it was Leia and Luke's turn to share a nervous look. I mean, _yes_ , Leia knew the boy. But they needed some sort of excuse as to how they "met".

The truth, while in all other circumstances would be mandatory, didn't seem like a good option. Especially considering the odd look that Luke's guardians had given each other.

"Yes," the teens said at the same time. "We met in Mos Eisley."

Leia and Luke looked at each other in shock. They were both stunned at what they had said. Leia was particularly confused.

"I see. And how old are you, dear?" Beru asked.

"Thirteen."

"Really? You and Luke are the same age, then. Are you from around here?"

"Uh. . .well, no, ma'am. Not exactly."

"Then where are you from?"

"Uh—"

"You know," Luke cut in. "Leia's had a long day. She should get to bed. Right, Leia?"

Leia looked back and forth between Luke and his guardians.

"Um, I guess so?" It came out as a question instead of an answer.

"She means, ' _Yes_ '. Let's go, Leia," Luke said, yanking her away from his aunt and uncle. Owen and Beru were left sitting where they had been, and wondering about the new girl. They had their suspicions.

"You don't think. . .?" Beru asked her husband.

"No, Beru. That's not possible," he answered.

Although, they both knew that it really was quite possible. Not likely, but possible.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _This day just gets weirder and weirder! I gotta say — it's turning out to be a not-so-great day. And, of course, today's the thirteenth of this month (on Tatooine, anyway)._

 _Typical. I'm not even superstitious, but this is just annoying._

 _Luke found my tiara. I had completely forgotten that I had put it in my satchel! When I was walking towards the shipyard on Alderaan (quite a while ago, it seems), I took off my tiara and was going to throw it off into the woods. . .but instead, I ended up putting it inside my bag._

 _It just seemed like a less dramatic option, you know?_

 _But, of course, Luke had to find the ONE THING I didn't WANT him to find! And what's more, I had to explain myself! So, Luke now knows everything, including the rather important fact that I'm a princess._

 _He actually took it better than I thought he was going to. Granted, he didn't believe me at first, but it's fine now._

 _He brought me to his house, and I accidentally insulted him when I basically said his house looked like a hazy blob in the distance._

 _We went inside, and it's actually a pretty nice house, as far as sand huts go! I told him that he should let his parents know that I'm here, and was then reminded that he lives with his aunt and uncle. He introduced me to them._

 _I don't think they like me very much. I mean, yeah, I'm a complete stranger at this point, but that's no reason to judge me! They looked at each other in what I think was mutual distrust of me. . .or something like that._

 _They were trying to ask me all these questions, and they wanted to know how Luke and I had met. For some inexplicable reason, we both said the same thing: "We met in Mos Eisley."_

 _How crazy is that?! How did we know to say the same thing? And I didn't even KNOW the name of that town! Needless to say, I'm incredibly confused._

 _I'm sitting in Luke's bedroom right now. He's asleep on the floor (he forced me to sleep on his bed because, "Girls shouldn't have to sleep on the floor"). But this way, he can't interrupt my journaling! I'd call it a significant improvement!_

 _His room is_ _a direct display of his personality. There are model speeders and TIE fighters all over the place (those are Imperial ships)._

 _His bed has a dark blue blanket on it, which is the only actual color I've seen all day. I wonder if he likes to pilot things. If he told me the truth, he's never been off the planet. . .which means he probably hasn't actually flown a ship._

 _Whatever the case, I should get to bed. I'm still kind of wondering why his aunt and uncle wanted to know my age. My age shouldn't affect anything, should it? Ugh. I always knew thirteen was an unlucky number._

 _-Leia_

 **A/N: *whew!* that was a longer chapter — for me, anyway. Hope you liked it! Hahahahaha Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen are catching on, eh? I wonder if they'll figure out who Leia REALLLLLY is. *wink***  
 **Hope you're all having a FANTABULOUS day (or night)! I'm writing this AN in the car as we drive through Xalapa, Mexico...while it's raining. Fun stuff.**  
 **I was gonna write this all sooner, but I bought a new pair of shoes (we're soulmates!) and I lovvveee them. So I guess you could say we're SOLEmates! (BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA SEE WHAT I DID THERE?!)**  
 **Sorry.**  
 **Okay. Vote, review, share, or whatever you want XD Lia out!**

 **-Lia**


	14. Chapter 14: She Hates Sand

**A/N: Hi there! Sorry it's been a while — well, it's been a week or so. Usually I'm pretty consistent with updates, so IZE SORRAY!**

 **Summer is always super busy with me, and I'm sure at least one of you can relate, hehe. The rest of this month is gonna be real hectic, as is August. . .ACK**

 ***puts head in hands***

 **Moving on! Spent a lotta time on this chapter, so I hope you all like it! Without further ado, let's hop right in!**

Han Solo was getting, for lack of a better word, _anxious._ He had been trudging through the Tatooine deserts for two (almost three) days now. The only time he stopped was to sleep and eat. Then, he would keep moving, driven by some unseen and unwelcome determination to find Princess Leia.

Chewie had been following him, and neither wanted to give up. But they also didn't enjoy the scorching sunlight, seemingly endless sand dunes, and occasional dangerous sand creatures.

Not thirty minutes ago, Chewie had to pull Han out of a pit of quicksand. _That_ had been an experience.

Han himself was unsure of why he was risking death to find this girl. They had only met. . .how long ago had it been? A few days? A week? Two weeks? Han couldn't remember. But she had been a mere stowaway, nothing more.

Or. . . _had_ she been nothing more?

 _No. Pull yourself together, Solo. She's thirteen, you're fifteen. She's a Princess, you're a smuggler. She's royalty, and you're. . .way lower than royalty. Use your common sense._

Chewbacca gave Han the, "I know what you're thinking" look more than a few times throughout the day. The young pilot, though, always brushed it off and moved on. Maybe denial would fix it. Denial always seemed to come through.

Yet, throughout the day, Han would find his mind wandering to the fiery Princess. She was small, but she packed a punch bigger than you'd expect. Her very personality was enough to leave Han awestruck.

He had traveled far and wide across the galaxy, but he'd never met a girl quite like Princess Leia.

Then there was the matter of her bravery. It was something other than _simple_ bravery, though. She possessed outright _boldness._ Leia had deliberately run away from her family and all she'd ever known. And for what?

She had done it because she was standing up for something she believed in. Or maybe she was _rebelling_ against something that she _didn't_ believe in. Or perhaps both.

One way or another, Leia had made a statement that she wouldn't deal with injustice. But she didn't stop there. The small Princess had proceeded to scale down the palace wall, run through a garden, and make her way to the Alderaan shipyard! What's MORE, she had _boarded_ a stranger's _ship. His_ ship.

Not knowing what would come next or where she'd go from there, Leia had snuck onboard _his_ beloved ship.  
Han was willing to admit that she probably wouldn't have been found onboard if it weren't for Chewie. She was probably clever enough to have hidden and then hopped off without Han even noticing.

And, as if the rest hadn't been enough, Leia had fooled Han (which he _still_ couldn't believe) and escaped _again_!

Sure, Han felt bad for planning to take her home, but what choice did he have? Leia had run away, and her family was most likely worried _sick._ Not to mention, the young girl had a whole _planet_ to rule one day. Surely she wasn't planning to stay gone forever. . .right?

Could she handle such a thing? Could she really just abandon everyone in her family. . .forever?

Han didn't believe for a second that she didn't miss her family. Regardless of being adopted, Leia loved her family like no other — Han knew it.

He pulled himself out of his thoughts long enough to look up at the sky. The twin Suns were just rising, and orange sunlight slowly began creeping across the desert.

Han shielded his eyes as he watched the Suns come up. A growl from his Wookiee companion caught his attention.

"Hmm? I don't know, pal. Think we should keep moving?" Han asked.

Chewbacca growled a firm agreement. As much as Han wanted to find Leia, he couldn't stop a sigh from escaping his lips.

"All right. Well, let's go. We'll check Mos Eisley one more time, and then we'll try to find some other civilization."

After that, the human and Wookiee picked up their pace and headed towards the town.

Meanwhile, Princess Leia was sleeping peacefully in Luke's bed. Considering it was the first actual bed she had slept in for a while, Leia was still out like a light.

There was also the fact that she had never been a morning person. If her parents weren't around to wake her up at the crack of dawn, Leia wasn't about to be an early riser.

When light began flooding the room through the one, small window, Luke sat up from his spot on the floor. A glance at Leia told him that she was still definitely asleep.

He didn't really want to leave her there alone, but he had to help his uncle with morning chores. So, he sprang up off of the floor and left the room to eat breakfast.

By the time Leia actually woke up, the Suns were already significantly higher in the sky. She propped herself up on her elbows and looked around. Luke wasn't on the floor, so she suspected he was already out and about in the house.

Leia's productive side of her conscience told her to get up and do something with her life, but it was definitely a struggle. Leia was still unsure about Luke's aunt and uncle. They really didn't seem to trust her, not that she _totally_ blamed them.

If Leia was honest with herself, she would've admitted that _she_ wasn't completely trusting of _them._ Something just seemed. . .off. Leia couldn't define the feeling for the life of her, but she felt that there were questions sitting in her mind that needed answering.

She threw back the covers and swung her legs over the side of the bed. Used to her own bedroom, she expected the pale floor to be cold to the touch. When her feet hit the ground, however, they met warmth.

 _Huh. Just another difference between our planets, I guess._

Leia started towards the kitchen, trying to remember the way there. After tripping on a bump in the floor, poking her head through several doorways, and finding herself back in Luke's room, the Princess sat back down on the bed, defeated.

"And here I thought I had a sense of direction," she muttered to herself.  
"Who am I kidding? This isn't exactly Alderaan."

"Alderaan?" a voice behind her asked.

With a startled gasp, Leia stood up and spun around. Instead of seeing a scary, unfamiliar being standing behind her, she saw Owen Lars. . .Luke's uncle.

And, unfortunately, he had just heard her basically tell him where she was from.

 _Maybe I can avoid the truth. I've done it before. . .why not try again?_

"Alderaan? I thought someone mentioned Alderaan," Owen added.

Leia put on a fake smile.

"Oh! That's right. I. . .visit. . .Alderaan. Uh, often." Once it was spoken, it wasn't a very believable lie — and Leia was fully aware of that.

"Visit? Ah, it was my impression that you _lived_ there."

"Oh, no. I have. . .family members there. I visit the planet often. It's quite beautiful there, actually."

"Huh. Never been there myself. I guess you could say I'd like to avoid mentioning the place. Too risky."

"Oh. Uh. . .why?"

Owen didn't seem to want to answer the question, so he quickly changed the subject.

"Say, have you ever worked a moisture vaporater before?" he asked.

Leia blinked at the abrupt, irrelevant question. Obviously, she'd never even _seen_ a moisture vaporater until she had arrived here. She didn't even know what they _did,_ much less how to work one!

"Um. . .no, Sir."

"Would ya like to head outside with Luke? Give it a shot?"

"Uh. . ."

"You can wear some of Luke's clothes. He won't mind. Whaddya say?"

"Uh. . .I—I don't. . ."

"Sounds good. Head outside and Luke'll show you what to do." He clapped her on the back.

Then, Owen turned around without another word and left the room. Leia, as was to be expected, had no idea what to do.

 _Work a DESERT FARM TOOL?! Boy, Leia. You've done it this time._

The only option she had was to do as she was told. It's not like she had anywhere else she could go.

 _Cultural experience. Cultural experience. Cultural experience._

Her eyes landed on a wooden chest in the far left corner. A dresser wasn't anywhere in the room, so the Princess assumed Luke kept his clothes in the chest.

Did she want to wear his clothes? No. Were any other options presenting themselves to her? Also no. Her next actions were self explanatory.

Not five minutes later, Leia trudged out of the room in a peach-colored tunic, matching pants, and brown boots.

To Leia, everything about that outfit was awful. The material was scratchy and heavy, the outfit as a whole was still probably a size or two too big, the long sleeved tunic and pants didn't mix well with the scorching climate, and her boots (that obviously weren't actually _hers_ ) felt heavy and made her step clumsily.

At the last minute, Leia threw her hair into a messy, curly, bun.

 _The last thing I need is this mop of curls hanging down my back. It's moments like this that I wish I could cut it._

By some miracle, Leia made it outside without getting lost by walking in circles. Luke was standing outside of the sandy igloo's entry/exit. As soon as he laid eyes on Leia, he burst out laughing. Leia wasn't amused.

"What? What's so funny?" she demanded, planting a hand on her hip.

Luke, still chuckling, said, "Nothing. You just. . .you look like a native, that's all."

"A native? Like. . .I look like I live here?"

"You could say that, yeah."

"Well, good! That's. . .okay, it's not the look I was going for at first. But I guess I'll take what I can get."

"Whatever you say," Luke said, rolling his eyes. "Hey, so wanna head over to the vaporaters?"

"Can. . .we. . .not?"

"Not an option. I have chores anyway, and you don't have anything better to do. Questions? Comments? Concerns?"

"Will you accept all of the above?"

"No, it was a joke." Luke laughed. "C'mon."

Luke proceeded to grab Leia's hand again and pull her over to the nearest moisture vaporater. And he really did have to _pull._

Leia made it very clear that she wanted no part in his chores. Several times, she dug her feet into the sand to slow him down, but he was equally as determined. When she got tired of dragging her heels, she simply sat down. This move earned her a backward glance from Luke, but he only grabbed her ankle and kept walking, dragging her through the sand.

 _I give up._

Soon enough, they reached the nearest vaporater. Luke dropped Leia's ankle and was about to get to work. Before he could do so, he figured he should probably check on Leia.

The farm boy turned around to see the supposedly dignified Princess of Alderaan lying in the sand with an arm over her face.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked jokingly, nudging her elbow with his foot.

"No. How do you people live like this?!"

"What do you mean?"

"It's. . .so. . .hoooooot," Leia complained. Luke couldn't help but laugh at her tone.

"I don't know. I've never lived anywhere else. You get used to it."

Leia let her arm flop back into the sand, accompanied by a discouraged groan. She already missed the cool, comfortable temperature of her home planet.

"As amusing as this picture is, I really should get to work. Let me know when you get your second wind," Luke grinned. Leia glared.

"Great. Let _me_ know when this planet has an Ice Age."

 _~two hours later~_

Leia forced herself to drag her feet back to the house. Slowly. . .slowly. . .slowly.

If someone would've seen her, the scene probably would have made them laugh. Or cry. Or both.

To put it simply, Leia. . .well, she looked like a different person. Though she had always been a bit boyish in nature, Leia had never enjoyed being how she felt now. Exhausted. Dirty. Sweaty. Aching.

Her hair was coming out of its bun, and curly strands it was sticking to her sweaty forehead. Besides her forehead, the rest of her face didn't look much better. It was covered in sweat, with several streaks of dirt across it.

Her entire outfit was coated with sand, and her hands were covered in dust. Her boots, even though the pants were tucked into them, were full of gritty sand and a small pebble or two.

Overall, Leia looked like a complete mess. Luke either didn't notice or didn't care. He looked much the same, except he didn't seem especially upset about it.

By the time the two teens reached the house, Leia was on the verge of collapsing. Not only had she actually ended up doing chores with Luke, but she'd trudged through the desert for two hours. . .in the hot sunlight. . .with long sleeves and pants on.

Luke, after taking a glance at Leia, got a concerned expression on his face. He found the situation rather funny, if not slightly unnatural for him.

While Luke was looking at her, Leia caught his eye. They blinked at each other. As if on cue, both of them got lost in a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

 **A/N: Awwww those two are cute ;) OH, right! Ive had someone ask me if I was planning on making. . .Luke. . .** ** _like_** **. . .Leia. Aaaahhhh, no. I mean, he likes her, obviously, but not like that! He just likes her as a friend. The poor kid has never had a real friend before — give him a break! Lol. So don't worry about that. I got dat covered, mmkay?**

 **Hope y'all liked that chapter! Vote! Comment! Share! Do whatever you want, as long as you liked it ;)**

 **Uuuuggghhh I'm super tired, so I'mma end this right here. *insert yawn***

 **Have a wonderful day/night, and stay awesome! (ps...over 200 VIEWS. YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING!)**  
 ***flops backwards onto bed***  
 **Byeeeee!**  
 **-Lia**


	15. Chapter 15: On The Move

**A/N: Why, hello there! So kind of you to drop by! This chapter is up sooner than I had planned, sooooo. . .yay, I guess!**

 **If you haven't noticed, I included a nice little lyric video. The song is WILDSIDE by Sabrina Carpenter and Sofia Carson. I heard it the other day on tv, and I was like, "ITS PERFECT."**  
 **Technically speaking, it's not totally relevant to the chapter. . .but if this story had a theme song. . .THIS WOULD BE THE SONG. It fits, believe me ;)**

 **Hope ya all had a lovely Fourth of July (or a lovely weekend last week if you don't celebrate it)!**  
 **Okay, I'll let you read now. I'll see you at the bottom! :)**

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well, it's official. I, Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan, look like a Tatooine native. Before you freak out, let me explain myself._

 _Owen (Mr. Lars? Owen Lars? Mr. Owen? Luke's Uncle?) found me in Luke's room and told me I could wear his nephew's clothes. To be honest with you, I didn't feel comfortable wearing a stranger's clothes, but I didn't have much of a choice._

 _I walked out of that room looking like a. . .I'm sure there's a name for it. Tatooinian? Sand-dweller? Either way, I don't think my own PARENTS would have recognized me! I looked like LUKE. Well, from my neck down, I guess._

 _How do people LIVE like this? The outfits they wear make me feel like I'm inside a potato sack! And since this is a DESERT planet, you'd think their clothes would be light, right? Wrong! They're heavy and itchy!_

 _I really wish I had my OWN clothes with me._

 _As if that wasn't enough torment, I had to follow Luke around while he did his chores. I didn't help very much, except for occasionally tightening something or holding something. Not that I had any idea what I was tightening or holding. Moisture farming is a tough business — and they come with tough chores!_

 _By the time we hiked back to the house, I thought I was gonna pass out. I also looked like I just crawled out of a Sarlaac pit. (A Sarlaac is apparently a large worm-monster that has a ton of teeth and tentacles. Luke explores a lot, I guess.) I was seriously starting to welcome a heat stroke. Not even kidding._

 _Now, we're sitting in Luke's room while I journal and he builds a model ship. He calls it an X-wing, but I've never heard of that. I really need to get out more._

 _You know, I wouldn't mind staying here for a while. I mean, it's not ideal. . .and the heat isn't great. And I wouldn't really enjoy dressing like this every day. Plus, Owen and Beru keep looking at me weird. Do I look like a suspicious person or something? What gives them that idea? What did I do to them? Sheesh._

 _But anyway, I wouldn't mind if I just. . .stayed here. Luke is a pretty good friend, as far as I'm concerned. He's also pretty amusing, if you know what I mean. I feel surprisingly calm around him, almost like I knew him before we actually met._

 _But I know that isn't possible, unless we met as babies or something. And that's an even MORE unlikely theory. What the heck am I talking about?_

 _I really love my family, but they never take me seriously. Well, my parents do. I know they only want what's best for me. My aunts are another story. They just try to micromanage every detail of my life in the case that it benefits_ ** _them._**

 _I know it sounds harsh, but it's true! To them, I'm a marionette that they control whenever they feel like it. My parents never really approved of how my aunts act around me, but they also never put their foot down. Mother and Father always just sort of. . .observe._

 _Father says his sisters can't be controlled, and he also says they give him a migraine (which I mentioned a while ago). Mother says I might hate this now, but one day I'll thank them. I don't think so._

 _It's just. . .I guess it's kind of nice to get away for a while. I've never been off-planet before, especially not by myself. And I know it's hard to believe. . .but I really haven't caught myself thinking about home very much!_

"You're right. I _don't_ believe that," Luke said, causing Leia to tense.

"Since when were you on this side of the room?" she asked, placing a concealing hand over her open journal.

"Since I got curious. You actually haven't missed your family yet? I find that hard to believe."

"Well, believe it. This is kind of like a. . .vacation. You know what a vacation is, right?"  
"Yeah, a relaxing trip away from your planet. Otherwise known as The One Thing I'm not allowed to do."

"Exactly. It's kind of nice to be gone from home. And Han's not here, so that helps."

"It does? Hey, do you write about Han in there?"

"Yeah—I mean, NO—I mean, MAYBE—I mean. . .it's none of your business!"

"I bet you do."

"That's not funny."

"Hey, can I read what you wrote today?"

"Absolutely _not._ "

"Why not? You let me do it before!"

"I didn't _let_ you. You didn't _ask._ Journals are supposed to be private!"

"Oh."

"So, can you go back to your desk now?"

Luke let out a dejected groan and returned to his model X-wing.

Leia continued writing.

 _So, as I was saying, I would be fine if I stayed here. These people seem nice enough, and I'd build up a heat immunity, I'm sure, haha. Luke has, apparently._

 _I should go—I hear Owen and Beru talking in the other room. Wish me luck on the rest of my stay here._

 _-Leia_

Luke, like Leia, had noticed the voices coming from the kitchen. But, when they strained their ears, a third voice could be heard.

Luke didn't seem all that bothered, but Leia was another picture altogether. Her eyes were wide, and her face was void of any color. Her heart was beating so loud that she was surprised Luke couldn't hear it. Even before she identified the voice, she knew exactly who it was.

 _I need to get out of here!_

"Luke!" she barked in a whisper. "We need to leave!"

Luke turned around with a confused expression on his face.

"Leave? Why? Where would we—"

"No time to explain! I need to go!" Leia began throwing her things into her satchel and shoving her (borrowed) boots back on.

"Go _where_?" Luke insisted.

" _Who cares?!_ Anywhere but here!"

When Luke still didn't make any move to stand up, Leia stopped in her tracks and looked him in the eye.

"HAN. IS. HERE!" she said.

This statement seemed to motivate the boy.

"What? He's _here?_ How? Why?"

"Does it matter? He's after me! We have to go! _I_ have to go—with or without you!"

Leia didn't wait for Luke any longer. She threw her bag over her shoulder and bolted out into the hall. It didn't take Luke long to follow, for he wasn't _quite_ ready for his new friend to be taken away so soon.

Leia stopped running when she reached the kitchen. The sudden stop wasn't announced, which meant Luke crashed into Leia's back, sending her to the ground.

"Excuse you!" she whisper-shouted.

"Whoops," he said, spreading his hands.

When Leia stood to her feet, she immediately backed up. Her instincts had been right: Han was standing in the doorway with Luke's aunt and uncle.

She motioned Luke to hide with her as they eavesdropped.

". . .brown hair and brown eyes?" Han was saying.

Owen answered, "Actually, yes. A girl who fits that exact description was here. She probably still _is_ here. Not sure if they got back from chores yet."

"What did she say her name was?" Han asked.

"Leia, I believe."

" _Leia?_ Yep, that's her."

"You, uh. . .you know her?"

"Yeah. She's my. . .good friend."

"I'm gonna need more proof than that, young man."

Luke, hiding with Leia in the hall, snickered.

"You're his _good_ friend? Interesting," he teased. Leia introduced her elbow to his ribs.

"OW!" he said, rubbing the spot she had hit.

"Luke, we have to _leave_!"

"How? They're blocking the only exit!"

Leia thought about that for a moment.

"Are you sure?"

 **~•~**

"I have a bad feeling about this," Luke said, shaking his head back and forth in defiance.

"Don't worry, it'll be fine. This is the only other way out," Leia responded matter-of-factly, looking around the large area.

"And what are we supposed to do here?" Luke asked.

"Find another way out."

"I really thought you had a plan!"

"This _is_ a plan! And if things get any worse, we can just hide here! Look at all the hiding places!"

"But we need to get _up._ To the _surface._ "

"We'll think of something."

Luke was unimpressed and impatient with Leia's slowly developing plan. His pessimistic mood led him to mumble, "What are we gonna do? Climb up the wall?"

Leia's head turned to stare at him. There was a mischievous look in her eyes that Luke didn't like. One day, he would come to recognize that sparkle.

"Oh, no. No. We are _not_ climbing the wall!" he declared, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Why not? It's our best shot!"

"Because we'll _die!_ I'd rather not die from falling off the wall of my own house, of all things!"

"We won't die. Questions? Comments? Concerns?" Leia said. Luke rolled his eyes at her sarcastic mimicking.

"All of the above," he fired back, stealing her former response.

Leia couldn't help but laugh.

"Oh well. Now _c'mon_." With that, she began waking across the room, keeping her eyes on the wall. The area was pretty big, and there weren't many things to climb. Nothing was tall enough to reach the surface. The only option was the wall. . .and it wasn't ideal.

There was, however, a white grate on the other end of the room. There were slits in it (convenient for climbing purposes) and it seemed sturdy. Leia wasted no time in sticking her feet in the bottom slots.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" Luke called from behind her.

"I'm escaping, duh! I'm not gonna sit here and get turned over to Han! Are you coming or not?"

The young boy took several distressed glances from Leia to the doorway behind him. He seemed to be thinking about his options, which were few. Luke had only met this girl a mere day or so ago, but he was already growing to like her. At times she could be a bit reckless (like right now, for instance), but it suited her.

Luke smiled at the thought of her actually being a Princess.

"Luke? Coming?" Leia asked. Luke thought he could detect a small hint of hopefulness in her voice.

"Fine," he finally said. "But only because you want me too."

Leia smiled while Luke started climbing the grate. Though their paces were about even, the actual climbing was difficult. The grate slits were facing down, so their bodies were at awkward angles. By the time they were halfway up, their fingers had marks from holding onto the slits above them.

Several times, Leia thought one of them was going to fall back to the ground below. It always gave her a fluttery feeling in her stomach.

After several long, grueling, somewhat painful minutes of struggling and climbing, their eyes became level with the surface.

Leia paused to say, "See? What'd I tell you? We made it!"

Luke, out of breath, panted out, "Yep. This isn't over yet, though."

The teens made it to the top and crawled onto the sandy surface of Tatooine. Leia made the mistake of looking down to where they came from, and got extremely dizzy.

 _I can't believe we just did that._

Now, though, they had other problems to deal with. Han and Luke's guardians were still arguing in the doorway of the home. If either Luke or Leia moved a few feet to the right, they'd be spotted. How were they supposed to leave the homestead?

Luke knew how badly Leia wanted to stay there. For reasons yet unknown to him, the Princess didn't want anything to do with Han _or_ her home. If she wanted to avoid Han, then by the Maker, Luke was going to help her.

"Hey, Uncle Owen has a speeder. It's parked behind the house. We could. . .we could use that," Luke said hesitantly.

Leia's eyes lit up, but they dimmed just as fast.

"But. . .that's stealing. I, uh. . .I can't guarantee that they'll get their speeder back."

"Hey, that's fine. I'm sure we'll laugh about this one day."

"I don't know. . .they're _your_ aunt and uncle. I don't want to—"

"Oh for crying out loud, let's _go!_ " Luke insisted. He pulled a still unsure Leia behind the house. There, like Luke had said, sat a speeder. The growing patches of rust took away the initial awe, but it was still a speeder.

"One day, I'll have my _own_ landspeeder," Luke said.

"Why would you want your own?" Leia asked, more focused on examining the vehicle.

"Oh, mostly so I can race people through Beggar's Canyon."

"Sounds dangerous."

"'Cause it is. Let's go."

Luke and Leia climbed into the speeder, and Luke took the driver's seat. Leia sat next to him in the passenger's seat. She didn't look comfortable with Luke taking the wheel.

"Um. . .you know how to drive this thing, right?" she asked, nervously shifting in her seat.

"I can pilot _anything._ "

"But this isn't a _piloting_ job! It's a speeder!"

"Have _you_ even driven a speeder?"

"No, but I've seen my Fath—"

"Good. _You_ drive."

Before she knew it, Leia found herself sitting in the driver's seat, horrified.

" _What_? I can't drive! It's illegal! I'm only thirteen!" she objected, trying to swap spots with Luke. He only pushed her back down and said, "It would've been illegal either way."

"Luke, we're gonna get in trouble!"

"You're only in trouble if you get caught."

Leia opened her mouth to contradict, but three voices were seeming to get closer.

"I think we're caught," she whispered.

"Turn on the ignition!"

"I don't know how!"

"Then TRY!"

The voices were definitely getting closer. Panic took over the Princess, and she jammed her foot on the right pedal. Hot exhaust flew out of the back of the speeder, and the vehicle lurched forward a few feet.

"It was already on? Why didn't you tell me!" Leia exclaimed, irritated. There was no time for Luke to answer, because the first person to spot them was Han.

"What the— _Leia?_ " he said loudly.

"Hang on!" the Princess yelled to Luke.

She pressed down on the throttle and sent the speeder flying forward. As if suddenly remembering there was a steering wheel, Leia made a sharp right.

"WHOA! Careful!" Luke yelled, clutching the edges of his seat.

"This thing really moves!" Leia yelled, not really hearing a thing Luke said.

Within a matter of seconds (in which Luke's life flashed before his eyes), they were off. They sped by Luke's aunt and uncle, who didn't know what to say.

Han came back to the front of the house and watched in awe as the speeder left nothing but a cloud of dust.  
"They. . .stole. . .the. . .speeder. . ." Owen breathed, clearly shaken.

Han, though extremely angry, let a chuckle escape his mouth.

"Yeah, that's Leia."

 **A/N: Hi again! OOOOHHH boy, look what the kids did! Living on the WILDSIDE, eh? Eh? See what I did there? XD Ugh I'm lame.**

 **Hope you liked that chapter! It was a long one to write, and there's plenty of research I had to do. How many people on this planet have googled, "how to drive a landspeeder"? Like, seriously? The things I do for fanfiction :)**

 **Thanks for reading, and you know the drill. Comment and tell yo' friends and all that. Thanks for reading! Byeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	16. Chapter 16: Not Your Average Friends

**A/N: Hi there! Back so soon? Great, 'cause I have another chapter for ya! I also have some pretty cool news (cool for me, anyway), but it can wait until the bottom of this chapter. Enjoy!**

The Princess had never driven a speeder before. To be more accurate, she had never driven _anything_ before. As much as she wanted to count it as another "experience". . .Leia didn't know how she felt about this particular circumstance.

Leia was having a great time and a horrible time all at once. For one, the steering wheel was difficult to turn, and dust was flying into her eyes and mouth; such things made it hard to drive _safely._

Luke was shouting directions and pessimistic opinions into her eardrums, the brake pedal was barely working, and she had pretty much been terrified since the moment her foot hit the first pedal. So that was freaking her out.

But there was also some sort of _thrill._ The wind whipped through Leia's messy curls and filled her with a newfound recklessness and courage. That free feeling was back again, and she never wanted it to end.

Even though she'd never driven a speeder before, Leia had yet to crash the vehicle. Therefore, the ride was going great!

Luke's mind was another story entirely. All he saw was Leia driving the speeder like it was a toy spaceship. His knuckles had turned white from gripping his seat (or anything else he could hang on to), and his blonde hair was constantly obscuring his view of any obstacles they might come across.

Luke wasn't even sure if Leia had a directive. Where was she planning to go? It was obvious that she didn't know her way around. When Luke got the chance, he glanced at Leia. A look of rising terror was in her eyes, but she was. . .smiling?

 _She's either insane, or she's having way too much fun with this._

"Leia!" Luke shouted over the whir of the engine.

"What?" Leia responded, not taking her eyes off the land ahead of them.

"Where are we _going?_ "

"Mos Eisely!"

"Why?"

"Why _not_?"

Luke didn't have an answer for that, so he gave up on trying to ask any more questions. Leia seemed like she had it under control. Of course, he'd thought that before. And that had led to them climbing up a wall.

It didn't take long for the teens to reach Mos Eisely. When the speeder came to a complete halt (just outside the town), Leia visibly relaxed. Her hands unclenched the wheel, and she leaned back in her seat. A loud, drawn out sigh came out of her mouth.

Luke spoke first.

"Well. That was. . .just. . .what _was_ that?" he asked, just as (if not _more_ ) stunned than Leia.

The Princess didn't move. Her body looked completely limp in the driver's seat. Only her eyes moved to look at Luke.

"That. . .was. . .something else," she responded dreamily.

"It sure was! Leia, you stole a _speeder!_ "

"I did, didn't I?"

"And you drove it! All the way to Mos Eisley!"

"Oh, yeah! I did!"

Luke laughed and shook the dust out of his hair.

"Leia, you're the coolest person I know."

"You think so?"

"Yep. But. . .for the record, next time, I'll drive."

"Sounds good," Leia laughed.

They climbed out of the vehicle, Luke coming behind Leia. Her legs were actually shaking from the ride.

 _What an adrenaline rush!_

Though neither would admit it, both Luke and Leia were having an extremely good time. Luke had never done something so action-packed, and Leia had obviously never stolen a Tatooine speeder to make a quick getaway.

And not that anyone's counting. . .but that's technically the third time she'd run away. She was on a _roll_.

As the teens walked into the town, the excitement faded to a faint uncertainty. What did this place have to offer them?

Luke had much less of an idea than Leia did, but honestly, Leia's "idea" wasn't exactly foolproof. It never was.

"So. . .what's the plan now?" Luke asked, breaking the silence. Leia kicked up some sand as she walked and watched her feet.

"Um. . .we have to hide out here until Han gives up."

"Hide out? In _this_ town? That's not a good idea."

"Why not? We don't have another choice, Luke."

"We could always head home!"

"That's a terrible idea! I'm not going back!"

"Well. . .we can't stay _here_ forever! We'd need to buy food, and we don't have any money."

Leia rolled her bottom lip between her teeth. After a few seconds, her head jerked up to face Luke. Leia's eyes were sparkling again. Luke took it as a bad sign.

"Leia? That's the look you get when you have an idea."

"That's right! We could—"

"Nope! Not listening!"

"—get a—"

"NO. Lalalalalalala!"

"—JOB!"

Luke took his fingers out of his ears in order to stare at his friend. He had to do a double take.

"What? Did you say. . .a _job?_ "

Leia nodded eagerly. "Yeah!"

"Leia, I could name a thousand reasons why that's a bad idea."

"Okay, go ahead."

"We're too young, we have _no_ experience, everyone here is untrustworthy, no one is hiring, the job wouldn't pay well, we'd look suspicious, and I doubt they'd let a girl work in a cantina. Should I go on?"

"Who said anything about working in a cantina?"

"That's really the only place we could get a job!"

"I say we go for it."

"I say we don't."

Leia was getting tired of arguing. She crossed her arms and braced her feet.

"Luke. I'm _getting_ a _job._ It's not an option — it's mandatory. And I'm hungry! We don't have all week!"

"Nice to meet you Hungry. I'm Luke."

 _He can't be doing this. Really?_

"Luke, I'm serious!"

"I thought you were Hungry."

"Are you _kidding_ me?"

"No, I'm Luke."

"UGH!"

Leia turned on her heel and stormed away, leaving Sarcastic Luke behind. She could hear him calling her name, but she kept moving.

This time, she noticed, civilians didn't give her a second glance. In fact, most people didn't even give her a _first_ glance! Leia looked down at her Tatooine outfit. The majority of the people walking around were wearing something quite similar. Dozens of tan tunics and brown boots passed by Leia, and she actually blended in this time!

As weird as it may seem, the young girl felt kind of accomplished. It felt nice to blend in, as if she belonged there. She liked that feeling.

"Leia!" Luke yelled. He stopped running and clamped a hand down on her shoulder. Leia tried to keep walking, but his hand wouldn't allow it.

"Leia! Fine!"

"Fine _what_?"

"We can get a stupid job."

A brief pause.

"I knew you'd come around," Leia replied, smiling. She shook off his hand and led him through the town.

 **~•~**

"So. . .this is the place?" Leia asked, staring up at the sign, squinting through the bright Tatooine sunlight.

"Yeah. It's where we were a couple days ago. A tough joint."

"And it's where we're gonna get a job?"

"Well, it's not guaranteed."

"Okay, let's go!"

"No, you can't just—!"

But Leia was already pushing through the swinging doors. Luke hurried after her, shouting objections.

Leia was once again caught off-guard by the vulgar sights being displayed in every direction. Tall, thin women were prancing around in revealing outfits; aliens and humans alike were sitting around a card table playing some sort of gambling game; someone was lying on the ground, unmoving.

As the teens walked by the card table, an alien began speaking loudly out of anger, and Luke covered Leia's ears.

 _I'm not even gonna ask._

They weaved their way through the small crowd and approached the barista who was standing behind the counter. As soon as they were in view, the barista narrowed his eyes.

"Hey!" he said. "I remember you."

"Me?" Leia asked, pointing a finger at her chest.

"Yeah, you! You were in here the other day! Get outta my restaurant if ya ain't gonna buy anything!"

"That's a good idea. C'mon, Leia, we tried," Luke said, trying to guide Leia out the door by her shoulders. She turned around sharply and stomped back up to the counter.

"No! We're not here to order anything, Mr. Bartender Sir. We're here for the job."

"What _job?_ "

"The one you're going to give us."

"Don't need any more help."

"Well, hire us anyway. We're a couple of desperate kids, okay?"

"No thanks."

Leia abruptly slammed both her hands on the countertop and glared into the man's eyes. He jumped the _slightest_ bit.

"Alright, I'm gonna level with you. _We_ need a _job_. And I've had a pretty rough week, okay? I had to run away from home and stow away on a ship, and the guy turned out to be a smuggler! Then, we landed here because he needed a part, but I ran away _again_ into the unforgiving desert of this planet! I ran to this town and met _him,_ " she gestured to Luke, "and stayed at his house. And this was all working out great until the smuggler showed up, so we _STOLE A SPEEDER_ to get _here._ And now we need _money_! So we can either _steal_ it from you or _earn_ it from you. I suggest you give us the _job!_ "

When she was finished, Leia kept her menacing pose on the counter. The barista looked a little uncertain of what to do. He wasn't about to let this little girl intimate him. . .but. . .she seemed pretty serious.

If they _really_ needed money, maybe it wouldn't hurt to give them a job. Just for a while.

"Alright, you've convinced me. Wait there." He stalked off to the back, and Luke immediately began talking.

"How did you do that?! You—you. . .intimidated a _bartender_! And he doesn't step to _anyone!_ H—how. . .what—!"

Leia just hopped on to one of the tall stools and took a deep breath.

"I have no idea what just happened. . .but it worked!" she finally said happily.

"And now we have to work here."

"Yep."

"Good luck with that."

"Yeah, gee, thanks. You have to work _with_ me, so we're in the same boat."

"Wow. Now you're _definitely_ the coolest person I know. Wait'll I tell my other friends!"

The man came back to the counter with two aprons. He tossed one at each kid and leaned forward on the counter.

"What are ya kids? Siblings?" he asked.  
Leia and Luke looked at each other and stifled laughter.

"Yeah. Siblings. Sure, let's go with that," Leia said, causing Luke to laugh.

 _Ha, SIBLINGS. As if._

If only they knew. . .

 **A/N: Haha, if only those two knew, huh? Eesh.**  
 **Well, I finally figured out how to upload this story to FFN! It took a couple hours, because I had to borrow my moms computer, log into Wattpad, copy each chapter, reload the FFN page, add it as a document, paste the chapter, and upload it. Plus, I had to upload each chapter individually, which means I did that whole process fifteen times. Your welcome, FFN readers! ;)**

 **But keep in mind that I'm still figuring it all out. . .so apologies in advance for any mistakes or weird things in the chapters. Okay? Okay.**

 **So, ANYWAY, hope you guys (and gals) enjoyed this chapter! Now I have to copy and paste and yada yada yada to upload it again. . .yikes. Well, see ya next time, BRFs (Best Readers Forever)!**

 **-Lia**


	17. Chapter 17: Feeling Cultured

**A/N: hi there! It's update time! Woohoo! I've been keeping a semi-consistent schedule of updating every three days, so we'll see how it goes, huh?**

 **Get ready to see just how great the job is turning out for Luke and Leia. You'll be glad you don't work in a cantina. Let's hop right in!**

Luke and Leia started work that very day. It was fun! It was new! It was an experience!

After fifteen minutes, Leia understood why kids didn't normally work in cantinas. Or work in general.

Both kids were kept on their toes every second.

The barista had Luke making/mixing the drinks. The back room was cramped and smelled like a creature had died in there.

"This is where you'll be working for the rest of the day. Get familiar with everything," said the man. "Lemme just check on your little friend out there."

The bartender made his way to the counter and managed to catch a fast glimpse of Leia. She was darting left and right, trying to take orders, fill orders, and find what the customers wanted.

 _I'm in over my head again, aren't I?_

"Having fun yet?" the man asked. "Wishing ya woulda listened to me?"

Leia didn't have the time to stop moving, so she only gave the man a sarcastic smile and turned away. The bartender chuckled to himself.

"They won't last more than a day," he mumbled to no one in particular.

A few moments later, Leia had a while to rest. All customers seemed to be satisfied, so she leaned against the counter wearily and scanned the room.

Business had definitely slowed down; Leia wondered what time it was. A low growl came from her stomach, reminding her that she hadn't eaten anything all day.

 _Huh. There's gotta be something here that isn't toxic or disgusting._

Before Leia could begin her search for food, another customer sat down on a stool. Leia sighed loud enough for him to hear her.

"Uh, hi! What can I get—"

Leia was cut short by the alien's demanding grunts. The more she listened, the more Leia realized that she didn't speak that language.

"Uh. . .I'm sorry, Sir. . .or ma'am. . .but I don't understand."

More incoherent dialect from the alien.

"I don't speak that! Here, how about. . ."

Leia hastily grabbed a mug and filled it with some brown liquid from a spout.

". . .this!"

The alien snatched it from Leia's hands and

"See? I knew you'd like that. If I can—"

Leia, once again, didn't get to finish.

The alien jabbered angrily and slammed the mug on the counter.

"I'm sorry! I only speak Basic!" Leia emphasized again.

The alien didn't seem to accept her apology. Instead, he picked up the mug once more and threw it directly at Leia, who didn't have time to duck.

Scalding hot liquid poured over her head and ran down the back of her shirt. Within seconds, Leia was saturated in whatever brown drink she had given the customer. The mug had smacked her in the forehead, where there would probably be a bruise soon.

The alien, satisfied with his actions, grumbled something else in his native tongue and walked away.

Leia was left standing there with her mouth wide open and her eyes shut tight as the liquid ran down her face.  
When her pain reflexes kicked in, Leia let out a loud, blood-curdling scream. It was only partially from the burn; she was also incredibly frustrated.

In the back room, Luke wasn't doing much better than Leia. He didn't recognize any of the ingredients, and things kept tipping over and falling on the floor or spilling. Already, Luke had broken two bottles of potent wine, knocked over the spices with his elbow, and slipped on spilled liquid (which landed him on the floor).

Luke was usually much more coordinated.

He had pretty much given up trying to _do_ anything, until he heard Leia's shrill yell. Then, he was up on his feet in a split second.

In a place like this, any number of things could have happened to her.

Luke bolted to the counter as fast as his feet could carry him. However, when he actually saw Leia, he stopped and debated whether to laugh or be concerned.

He decided on being concerned, and _then_ he laughed. Leia thought it was everything _but_ funny.

"Luke! How could you—" she started to say. But as soon as she moved, Leia got a mouthful of the bitter liquid. As the Princess sputtered and tried to spit the drink out, the bartender returned. You can only imagine what was going through his mind.

He glanced at Leia but didn't comment on or otherwise acknowledge her current state. She was grateful for that. . .sort of.

"Here," he said, suddenly all business. "Your pay for the day." He handed each teen two coins. Leia looked appalled.

" _Two credits?!_ " she exclaimed. The man nodded and replied, "Yeah, don't spend it all in one place, kid. And, uh. . .don't bother to come back tomorrow. I think you've done enough damage to last the rest of the year."

With that last remark, he led them both to the swinging doors and shoved the teenagers back out into the bustling streets.

The rapid transition from the dark cantina to the blazing sunlight was drastic, and Leia's eyes squeezed closed.

"Well then," Luke said lamely. "That lasted longer than I thought it would!"

Leia brushed herself off, purposely splattering Luke with whatever was dumped on her, and started stomping away. Luke was forced to follow.

"I think. . .that was an experience," Leia finally said, more to herself than to Luke.

"True. . .and what exactly happened in there? Why are you all wet?" Luke asked, eyeing her soaking hair.

"I'd rather not _talk_ about it. But is there water anywhere around here? Somewhere I can rinse off?"

"Yeah, if we go home."

"You know we can't do that."

"But we _could._ "

"NO."

"Well, what do you suggest we do?"

For a while, silence fell upon the two. They walked without speaking until Leia sighed.

"I don't know," she admitted. "We don't have anywhere else to go. The only thing we can do is move forward."

So that's exactly what they did. For at least an hour, the two friends dragged their feet through the sand until something in the distance caught Leia's eye. A very familiar shape was looming ahead. . .

"Is that. . . ?" she trailed off, squinting. Luke followed her gaze.

"Is that what?"

"No _way!_ " she squealed. Having found her second wind, Princess Leia broke out into a run. Luke, though confused, ran alongside her until they reached the object.

I say object, but it was much bigger than that. Sitting before them in all its mismatched glory, was the _Millennium Falcon._

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _You'll never believe what happened today. All in one day, so many things happened. Luke and I had to steal a speeder because Han came to his house! But neither one of us knew how to drive. Of course, I ended up with the task, and we didn't crash! We actually made it all the way to Mos Eisley!_

 _We didn't have any money, so my idea was to get a job. Luke said no, but I used my likable charm and charisma to change his mind (yeah, as if). I mostly forced him into it._

 _The job at the cantina didn't go very well. I have no idea what Luke had to do, but I had to deal with serving customers! I thought it would be fine, but I've never been so wrong. I ended up with boiling hot LIQUID on me! An alien customer was trying to talk to me, but I didn't understand. So I just gave him (or her) a random drink, which eventually got thrown at me._

 _We were payed TWO LOUSY credits each, which wasn't any help. Luke and I didn't know what else to do, so we just kept moving forward. I'm glad we did, because guess where we are. Go on, guess! No, DON'T guess. I want to tell you myself._

 _We're on the Millennium Falcon! Yes, Han's ship! He's with Luke's aunt and uncle, so the ship is empty! The ramp must not have closed all the way, because we just lowered it with our own hands. Typical Han; leaving the ramp half shut._

 _We both ate a decent meal, and we even got to shower! (I got to rinse off the drink!) It was great! Now we have a place to sleep tonight, but I'm not sure how long we should stay here. Han could come back at any moment!_

 _Luke is in the cockpit looking at everything — I had to tell him what NOT to touch so he doesn't lift us into space on this thing._

 _Anyway, I think we should get to bed. I have a feeling that tomorrow's gonna be another busy day. It seems like I can't catch a break these days! Well, it beats sitting in a castle all day, I guess._

 _-Leia_

 **A/N: Aaaaaand, we're back. How'd ya like it? Good? Bad? Lemme know, as always :)**  
 **They've found the Falcon! You can only imagine what chaos will ensue from this point. Those kids are a handful, I'm tellin ya.**

 **Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I now have over 300 READS. *passes out***  
 **That's amazing! I still can't believe people actually like the nonsense and stuff that I write! Keep being awesome, guys!**

 **-Lia**


	18. Chapter 18: Use The Force

**A/N: Hiyah, wonderful people of the Internet! Hope you're having a wonderful day (or night)! Yes, it's that time. Time for a new chapter of My Life as Leia (MLAL)! This chapter is actually kinda early. . .hmm. . .**

 **Some fun stuff is gonna happen in this chapter—like, FUN. I spent forever writing this chapter! I'm literally SO EXCITED to upload this! This is my fave chapter so far, if I do say so myself.**

 **I hope you like it as much as I do!**

The next day, Leia woke up before Luke. At first, the Princess didn't remember where she was. That is, until she saw the all too familiar checkered game table. A small, relieved smile spread across her face. It was good to be 'home'.

While Leia was making her way to the cockpit (where Luke had fallen asleep), she noticed the broken hyperdrive. The mechanism was still emitting a small wisp of smoke and was starting to fog up the area.

 _Hmm. I wonder if Luke knows how to fix stuff like this._

She decided to test the theory. Leia's next stop was the cockpit of the ship. Luke was sitting curled up in the pilot's chair with his head in his arms. Leia stifled a laugh. He didn't look comfortable, yet the boy was fast asleep.

"Luke," she whispered. When he didn't move a muscle, Leia tried again.

"Luke." No response.

"Luke!" Nothing.

After breathing out a discouraged sigh, Leia decided to try the more aggressive approach.

" ** _LUKE!_** " Leia yelled directly into his ear, while at the same time giving the chair a kick so it spun around.

Luke woke up with a yell, but he ended up falling onto the floor in a groggy, disoriented heap.

Leia started giggling and didn't bother to feel guilty about it. With a low groan, the young farm boy moved to a sitting position.

" _Please_ tell me there was a reason for that!" Luke exclaimed, rubbing the back of his head tenderly.

"Actually, there was! Remember the thing Han broke? The hyperdrive—"

"Whoa, wait, this ship has a hyperdrive?"

"Yeah. Why? Is that surprising?"

"I've never seen one of those before! Not in real life, anyway."

"Oh. Then I guess you won't know how to fix—"

"Fix what? Fix the hyperdrive?"

"Why can't I ever finish a sentence around y—"

"Where's the hyperdrive?!"

Instead of answering this time, Leia just motioned for Luke to follow her down the hall.

 _It's no use trying to talk to him._

They reached the smokey area, and Luke got to stare in awe at the broken piece of machinery. Though, as far as Leia knew, the hyperdrive was actually missing a piece. Wasn't that the reason Han came to Tatooine?

When Leia looked closer, there was definitely a large chunk missing. How could Luke fix it without—

"Leia, I bet I could fix this!" Luke yelled, hands waving about excitedly.

 _It seems that I can't even finish a thought around here!_

"How?" Leia answered, baffled.

"I'm not actually sure. But I know I could figure something out."

"Um. . .okay, if you're sure."

The next hour flew by. Luke was content, working happily at the hyperdrive. Leia busied herself with a further exploration of the ship, joined by a few peeks into some crates. Each one introduced a new smell to the girl.

 _Ew. That's definitely illegal._

Leia was forced to come back to the hallway when Luke called her name, sounding dangerously desperate.

"What is it?" she asked when she arrived.

"Does Han have a toolbox?"

"Uh. . .Leia wasn't sure how to answer. Was that _all_?  
"I'm sure he does, but I wouldn't know where it is."

Luke didn't look happy with her answer.

"Well, I need a fusioncutter. I'm assuming Han has one of those."

"But I don't—"

"Just go look. Please?"

Leia sighed in defeat, trying to sound extra annoyed. She didn't know where Han's toolbox was, or even if he _had_ one. Then again, it would be a relief if Luke could fix the hyperdrive.

 _It's worth a shot._

Leia embarked on her search for Han's toolbox.

 _If I were a toolbox, where would I be?_

Did Han have a bedroom? Where would his cabin be? There must be a crew quarters or something, right? Or maybe it was by the maintenance access place?

There were way too many options.

Leia stumbled across a hall that contained closed doors on each side.

 _One of theses has to be Han's cabin._

Each door she tried didn't budge. The only thing Leia gained from it was sore hands from trying to pry the doors open.

Right as Leia was about to give up and return to Luke empty handed, the very last door opened with a satisfying hissing sound.

The inside of the room looked as messy as a trash compactor. There were books, instruction manuals, and stray tools scattered everywhere. A rickety-looking shelf displayed some kind of trophy and an old Imperial comlink.

There was hardly an inch of space that wasn't covered in dust or clutter. Amidst it all, Leia did manage to make out the faint shape of a bed and a desk.

 _Yep. This is Han's room if I ever saw it._

There was only one task left: find the toolbox.

"Leia! Do you have it yet?" Luke called from across the ship.

"No! Gimme a second!" Leia called back.

She searched everywhere, but there wasn't any sign of a toolbox. Under Han's bed? Nothing. On his desk? Under his desk? No. Hidden under a pile of clutter? Nope.

The last place Leia checked was all the shelves. Of course, on the highest shelf, practically wedged between the shelf and the ceiling, sat Han's metal box of tools. Leia glared in disdain at it.

 _There's no WAY I can reach that!_

While silently cursing her height, Leia looked for something, _anything,_ she could use to reach the box.

The Princess tried a variety of methods to get the toolbox down, including but not limited to: throwing three of Han's shoes at it; jumping and trying to hit the bottom of the shelf to _shake_ the box off; and even standing on a chair while reaching her arm as far as it would go. The last one proved to be the most successful this far.

As Leia stood on the chair, she stretched her arm to its limit. Her fingers weren't even _touching_ the shelf.  
Luke had called twice more since she began her attempts, and Leia hoped he wasn't getting angry.

 _Ugh! Why can't I just REACH?! Why do I have to be so short! How in the galaxy am I supposed to—_

Her thoughts were interrupted when a sudden and starling image flashed through her mind. Around the edges of Leia's vision, things got blurry. It was like she was seeing something that was happening somewhere else, but still to her. How odd.

The image was of the toolbox, and it seemed to jump off the shelf. It landed on Leia, and then the image faded.

As soon as Leia opened her eyes (that she hadn't realized had been closed), she picked up a bad feeling. And she should've payed attention to the feeling, as she would one day learn to.

For that very moment, the toolbox flew off the shelf and hit Leia square in the face.

"GAH!" she yelled as she toppled off the chair, bringing both the chair and the toolbox with her. Leia landed painfully on the floor with a very amplified crashing noise. It didn't take Luke long to get to Han's cabin. The sight before him wasn't one of dignity, that's for sure.

Leia was tangled up with the chair, and the toolbox was open (and lying on her back). Tools were splayed all over the room. Leia herself was wearing a look of shock and pain. Mostly shock, though you'd think the pain would be her main concern.

"What. . .what _happened_ in here?" Luke asked. "Are you all right?"

Leia attempted to sit up, but the chair prevented it. Instead, the toolbox slid off her back, scattering even _more_ tools.

"Um. . .y—yeah, I'm fine. I'm good. I—"  
Leia started.

She looked as if she wanted to tell him something, but she must've thought better of it. "Yeah, it's fine."

Luke took a few tentative steps forward before lifting the chair off of her. When she stood up, Leia began to explain her actions.

"I—I don't know what happened! I was just trying t—to. . .get. . .the. . ." the girl trailed off. Her face took on a look of understanding. Luke, however, was still completely confused.

"Leia, it's fine. Do you have the tool?" he asked instead. The dazed look left Leia's eyes as she shook herself out of it.

"Hmm? Oh. . .uh, I didn't. . ." She was about to explain that she actually _didn't_ find it, but something drew her eyes to her right hand. She was clutching a fusioncutter.

"Oh. Uh, yeah! Here," she said, handing the tool to Luke. As much as he wanted to question everything that just went on, Luke only thanked her and returned to the hyperdrive.

Leia was left standing there willing herself to take deep breaths. She briefly fingered the spot the toolbox had hit her. It hurt, but that wasn't what she was concerned about. She was still pondering what she had _seen._

 _What just_ ** _happened_** _?_

The answer was quite clear, even to Leia. Her only problem was that she refused to acknowledge the truth. What was the truth? Leia had seen a vision.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well. I'm not sure how to start this entry, honestly. What is there to say? How do I explain this? I suppose I should start at the beginning, though I don't want to._

 _It all started. . .when I was born. I don't know anything about my birth parents, but I know one of them (or perhaps both of them) had something called the "Force". When I was born, that power was given to me as well. I just didn't know about it._

 _For reasons yet unknown to me, I was adopted. It was only a matter of time until Mother and Father found out what I could do. Or maybe they had known about it the whole time? I don't know._

 _But I began to accidentally do things with the power. When I was still a baby, I could move things around without touching them. When I was a toddler, I started to anticipate things before they happened. My parents must have feared what others would think, so. . .when I was eight, they finally told me about all this. I was told that I had a "gift", and that I was to ignore its existence._

 _My Father told me that it could potentially put me and others in danger, and that I needed to learn how to block it off. Needless to say, that's exactly what I did. Ever since that day, I've kept it in the darkest recesses of my mind. I haven't used it, and I've actually figured out a way to ignore it! Until today. Today, it only took something as simple as a TOOLBOX._

 _Do you know what happened? I had a vision. And then I fell backwards off a chair with a toolbox on my face, but that's not important. I had a VISON. What does this mean? Am I not blocking it out?_

 _I almost told Luke about it, but I doubt he'd understand. I wouldn't wanna freak him out. But I'm kind of scared. Yet, also kind of. . .happy? I mean, it was an amazing feeling! I could feel exactly what was about to_  
 _happen. . .and I'm pretty sure I moved the box with my mind! I didn't know I could still do that!_

 _But I can't tell anyone. I can at least honor that much of my promise. Not quite sure what to do from here. I can't do anything about it. I can't tell anyone. I just need to try harder to hide it all._

 _-Leia_

 **Elsewhere in the galaxy. . .**

"I feel a great disturbance in the Force. .."

 **A/N: AAAAHHH DID I JUST DO THAT? YES. I DID.**  
 **Okay, any theories on who that last ominous voice was? I'm curious to know what you guys think, ya know? Obviously, I know who it is. Hehehehehe.**  
 **So now you know what Leia's gift is (it was mentioned several chapters back). Haha that scene with the toolbox is stolen from one of my other works-in-progress, but it's super top secret. But that scene is in my other project, just with different characters. I plagiarized my own work. I could sue myself. But I won't.**  
 **Okay, lemme know what you thought about that chapter! Personally, I LOVE IT. But that's just my opinion.**  
 **Bye! :)**  
 **-Lia**


	19. Chapter 19: Walking and Talking

**A/N: ITS THAT TIME OF THE WEEK! Time for another chapter!**  
 **This one is a great one, lemme tell ya. I'm pretty proud of it, so I hope you like it! We'll be getting into the peak of the story in a few more chapters, so this is a teaser for what's to come. Hold onto your hats, guys.**

The next couple of days passed without incident. Luke and Leia were content on the _Millennium Falcon,_ and there was thus far no sign of Han. The two friends didn't have a backup plan though, which would eventually lead to disaster. . .but that's for another time.

To make a long story short, Luke and Leia were living the good life for a while. Until, two days after they had boarded the ship, Luke got a bad feeling.

Luke, who we haven't payed much attention to lately, went to find Leia. He was feeling as if something was about to happen, but he couldn't pinpoint _what._ His thought was that Leia might be willing to listen, or maybe offer some encouragement.

Luke began his mission to find Leia.

Where was Leia, you ask? She was currently sitting on top of a crate, writing in her infamous journal.

Unbeknownst to Luke, the Princess was feeling something strange as well.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Ever since that day with the toolbox incident, more things have been happening. That same day, I accidentally levitated one of Luke's tools behind his back. Luckily, he didn't notice anything. Then, yesterday, I had a really complicated dream. Kind of disturbing._

 _In the dream, I was sitting in the sand, probably on this very planet. Next to me were two people, but I didn't catch whether they were male or female. We were all talking and laughing, until the sky turned an odd shade of red. A large, dark shadow covered us and I heard some kind of terrifying breathing._

 _Then I woke up in a cold sweat, which has never happened to me before (that I can remember, anyway)._

 _I've never had a dream like that before. I have no idea if it means something, or if it's just my own paranoia. Either way, I didn't like it one bit. I'm trying my hardest to forget about it, despite the fact that it's the only thing I've been thinking about. . ._

 _Today is going alright, I suppose. I really only had one thing happen. I keep getting this feeling that something's wrong. There's this little buzzing in the back of my mind, and it won't leave me alone!_

 _I keep getting the premonition that something is going to happen, and I might not be prepared for it. What if something horrible happens? What if something dangerous happens? And why do I feel like a_ ** _bad_** _thing is going to happen?_

 _I wish I could tell Luke, but what if he thinks I'm crazy? I barely believe_ ** _myself._** _There's no way he'd believe me._

 _But how can I ignore this feeling? What if something bad actually happens? What if I'm not prepared? WHAT IF—_

At that time, Luke walked through the doorway and (once again) interrupted Leia's journaling. Leia didn't have time to speak, because Luke held up a hand and beat her to it.

"Leia. I need to talk to you."

"Uh. . .okay."

"I wasn't gonna say anything, but I have this feeling—"

"That something's about to go wrong. . . ?" Leia finished, eyes wide.

They both paused and looked at each other.

"Yeah!" Luke said, frowning. "You. . .feel it too? That's. . .weird."

"I know! I didn't want to tell you, because I thought you'd think I was crazy!"

"That's exactly what I was thinking!"

"Whoa. . ." both teens said at the same time.

Neither one had any idea what to do. They had the same bad feeling, but what did it mean?

"Well. . .do we do something about it?" Leia asked.

"I don't know. What can we do?"

"We could. . .we could leave!"

"But we just got here a few days ago!"

"Han could show up at any moment! Do you think it's safe to stay here? This is his ship, after all."

"Fair point. Where would we go?"

"Um. . .we could. . .go back. . .to your house?"

"That sounded like a question."

"That's because it was. Whaddya say?"

"I say. . .I say we give it a try, I guess. Even though Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru are gonna be furious."

"Okay! What are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Alright. . ."

"No, actually, hold on. I gotta finish writing this. Uh. . .go gather some stuff together. I'll be there in a minute." Leia waved him away.

"Okay."

With that, Luke left the room so Leia could finish her journaling.

 _Actually, never mind. I just had a conversation with Luke, and I think we have a plan. Well, I wouldn't call it a plan, or even a Plan B. It's mostly a wild idea that'll probably land us in big trouble. I'm good at coming up with those._

 _I feel bad for dragging Luke into all this. But I guess being my friend means that dangerous adventure is an occupational hazard. He'll just have to get used to it._

 _We're going to head back to his home. Hopefully Han won't be there. If he is, we're in much_ ** _bigger_** _trouble. Haha, "bigger trouble." As if that's even possible._

 _-Leia_

In a matter of minutes, Luke and Leia were out of the _Falcon_ and ready to be on move again. Leia made sure to fasten her satchel shut, and Luke closed the ramp as they left.

After a very short while of walking, Leia began thinking.

 _What if I have to go home?_

Luke seemed to pick up on her suddenly somber mood. He didn't know how to cheer her up, so he decided to get to the root of the problem.

"So. . .Leia," he started, "you seem distant."

She looked up with a surprised expression.

"Distant? That's not the word I would use. More like. . .worried."

Even as the words left her mouth, Leia visibly winced. She obviously didn't want to admit a weakness.

"What are you worried about?"

"I don't know. Just. . .the fact that I might have to. . ."

"Have to what?"

"Leave."

The two teens stopped walking at the same time.

"You. . .don't want to leave?" Luke asked, confused. "I've lived here my whole life, and I've _only_ wanted to leave."

"Yeah, but I'm different. My _life_ is different. If I go back home, my family is just going to make me into a. . .well, a Princess."

"But aren't you _already_ a Princess?"

"Yeah, technically. But I'm adopted, remember?"

"What difference does it make?"

"I'm royalty by association!"

"But you can't change that."

"That's the problem! People just tell me what to do, where to go, how to dress, how to act. . .it's. . .oppressive!" Leia's stomach tightened just thinking about it.

"You're not used to it by now?"

"No! I've been against it since day one! It just got to a point where I needed to. . .get away from it all. I don't know."

"Do you think. . .that maybe you act out like that for attention?"

Leia's eyes narrowed the slightest bit.

"I don't _think_ so. It's just my personality! Aunt Celly says I was born with a rebellious spirit. Apparently, I got it from my father. My real father. But I wouldn't know."

"Your father? Huh. My aunt and uncle always say I have too much of _my_ father in me. They say he never liked to stay in one place for very long."

"Huh. Then I guess we have something in common."

"I guess we do."

A moment of silence. Not necessarily uncomfortable silence, though.

"So. . .now that we're talking about parents. . .do you know anything about your mom?" Leia asked cautiously. She found it surprising that Luke's family would keep his parents a secret. They didn't seem like the type to be anything but straightforward.

"My mom? Nah. My aunt and uncle never talk about her." Luke sounded disappointed.

"That's odd. I don't know anything about my mom either. I just remember some really distant feelings of her. I imagine she looked like me. . .a little bit."

"Wow. And what about Han? How do you know him?"

"I don't! He's just a smuggler that I met when I stowed away. I didn't know him before that."

"Really? Because the way you look at him—"

"I _don't_ look at him!" Leia exclaimed, stomping her foot. When she realized what she said, Leia immediately regained her composure.  
"I mean. . .I don't look at him a certain _way_. He's. . .irritating."

"Yeah, right. That's what girls say when they like a boy."

"They do _not!_ "

"Yeah they do!"

"How would you know?"

"I just do! Plus, you're not a very good liar."

"Hey! I'm a _great_ liar!"

"Ha! You just admitted you were lying!"

Leia's face turned pink.

"Nuh-uh! I just admitted I can lie really well! It has nothing to do with Han!"

"Prove it!" Luke was laughing.

"How could I prove something like that?"

"I don't know. You know, you should introduce me to Han."

"Nope. Never."

"Why not? He seems like he'd be fun to know."

"Yeah, he's _real_ fun until he flies you across the galaxy and lands you on a desert planet."

"I'd still like to know him."

"Hopefully that'll never happen. If he ever meets _you_ , it'll be so he can take me home."

"Speaking of which. . ." Luke began.

Leia began to walk again, forcing Luke to keep up. Luke knew that she was trying to avoid what he was about to ask. Leia's pace quickened to the point of almost jogging.

Luke had to slow her down with a hand on her arm. The Princess kept walking, but at a slower speed.

"Leia. . .what's your—"

"Birthday? Soon."

"No. What's your—"

"Oh, what's my dream job? Probably a Senator."

"Leia—!"

"No!"

"What's your _plan_?" Luke asked, firing the words out in a rush.

"Plan. . .for what?" Leia replied innocently.

"For when you leave."

"Did I say I was going to leave?"

"No, but—"

"I'm not planning on it."

"But you can't stay here forever. You know that. . .right?"

Leia paused for only the barest of seconds before continuing her walk. Luke caught the brief glitch in her confident act.

"Right?" he repeated, more seriously.

"Yeah. Yeah, I know that."

"So. . .where'll you go?"

"I don't know. I don't have a plan. You know I've just been making this up as I go. . . _right?_ "

"Uh. . . _no_ , I _didn't_ know that. It would've been _nice_ to know, though!"

"Well, it's the truth. I didn't have a plan. Everything since running away from the palace has been spontaneous."

"Huh. _Spontaneous_. That's a good word to describe your life at this point. I like that word."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. It feels good." Leia was definitely enjoying every moment of her freedom.

"No kidding."

By that time, the Suns had set over the horizon, leaving only the faintest orange light to see by. Both teens knew they couldn't keep walking in the dark.

"We should find a place to sleep," Luke said, glancing around the desert landscape.

"Here? Now? Where?"

"Over. . .there," Luke pointed. His finger drew a beeline to a large rock in the distance.

"We're gonna sleep behind a _rock_? At night? In a desert?"

"Spontaneous! Remember?"

"This isn't what I had in mind."

"Is it ever?"

"Point taken."

 **A/N: Not very much action, I know. But this is all leading up to a very important Chapter 20, which is coming very very soon. Let's just say. . .we'll be seeing Han very soon. Like, in the next chapter. Haha, be prepared.**  
 **Luke and Leia wandering somewhat aimlessly through a desert. What could go wrong?**

 **PLENTY.**

 **Hope you liked the chapter! Btw. . .so far, no one has correctly guessed who said "I feel a great disturbance in the Force. . ."! I'm pretty sure everyone said it was Obi-Wan, and while that may be true for the movies. . .**

 **Hahaha we'll just have to wait and find out. No spoilers from me, no siree.**

 **Okay, have a great day/night! Byeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	20. Chapter 20: Reunion

**A/N: hi there! Welcome to another chapter of MLAL!**

 **Okay. Guys. You have NO IDEA how excited I am to upload this.**

 **YOU HAVE NO IDEA. This is the long awaited *deeeep breath* CHAPTER TWENTY! Time flies when you're havin' fun!**

 **This chapter took eons to write, lemme tell ya. And I've been waiting to upload it cuz there's some neat stuff in here!**

 **Alsooooo. . .this chapter does end on a lil' cliffhanger. So that's a thing. ENJOIIII!**

The next morning, Leia woke up before Luke, which was a rare occurrence.

An hour or so later, Luke awoke to find Leia sitting dejectedly atop the rock they had slept behind. She was curled up in a ball with her legs tucked to her chest. Her arms were wrapped around herself, and her eyes stared off with a faraway look.

Despite the very focused atmosphere that surrounded Leia, Luke thought there was something more going on beneath the surface.

He climbed up onto the rock and sat next to her. Leia made no move to acknowledge his prescence. In fact, she seemed to be ignoring him on purpose.

Every time Luke tried to look at her, the Princess turned away and stiffened slightly. She kind of appeared as though she wanted to say something, but she stayed silent.

Finally, Luke took her by the shoulders and forcefully turned her around. She didn't actively resist.

Leia's usually dazzling brown eyes were dim and filled with unshed tears. Now Luke understood why she kept turning away. The sight of Leia crying was a rare one indeed.

"What's the matter?" Luke asked, confused. She had been fine last night! What had happened between then and now? Bad dream? Was she hurt?

Leia blinked back the vulnerability and shrugged. Luke shook his head.

"Leia, I know it's not nothing. If something's wrong. . .I'd like to think you can tell me."

"Of _course_ something's wrong!" Leia erupted.

"What—"

"But I can't _tell_ you or you'll think I'm crazy!"

The last statement got Luke's attention. Leia, realizing what she had revealed, clamped her mouth shut and turned away again.

"You know. . .I bet I'll believe you. I've felt the same way you have. Just tell me."

Leia faced Luke once more. She opened her mouth as if to reply, but the words died before they left her lips. Leia ended up changing the subject, which Luke _noticed_ but didn't voice.

"I've been thinking. We left the speeder in Mos Eisley. Don't you think we should get it back?"

"And go back to _that_ cesspool? I don't think so."

"But doesn't the speeder belong to your aunt and uncle?"

Luke had to admit that Leia made a good argument.

"Fine," Luke sighed. "But only to get the speeder."

"Right."

The two friends hopped off the rock and set off to Mos Eisley in search of the parked speeder.

Although, if Leia had stayed on topic, she just might've found out that she and Luke had more in common than they knew.

Now, you must be wondering about Owen, Beru, and (of course) Han and Chewbacca. I assure you, they're doing just fine. In fact, now that Luke and Leia are walking, why don't we go check on our other characters?

Han, in fact, _hadn't_ left the Lars homestead. He had stayed there in hope that maybe the two kids would come back. As you know, they hadn't.

The pilot and his Wookie friend were actually getting ready to head out.

"Me and Chewie were thinkin' of hitting the road," Han explained to the adults.

Owen was more than happy to see them go.

"Oh, of course. Stay outta trouble, kid. And while you're at it, bring back our nephew," he said. Han hesitated before giving a slight nod.

"Uh, right. I'll do my best, sir. Sorry for gettin' you two into this mess. It's my fault for letting the Princess outta my sight."

Owen and Beru shared a look.

"Well, see ya around," Han said, shaking their hands. Without another word or a backward glance, Han and Chewbacca left the small home and began their journey to a certain town.

Han believed they should check Mos Eisley again before moving on. It was worth a shot, right?

 ** _~•~_**

Leia and Luke had reached the village by now. They were, however, having a hard time finding the speeder. It didn't really differentiate from any _other_ land vehicles, and there was no way to distinguish it from anyone else's speeder.

There was also the fact that Luke had long since forgotten where they parked it.

He was given a stern lecture (brought to him by Leia) about responsibility and maturity.

Leia knew that wandering through Mos Eisley wasn't exactly an effective way to find the speeder. Luke was really the only one looking; Leia was completely distracted by another nagging feeling.

Another feeling that something was about to go wrong. She knew that Luke had felt something too, but. . .was _he_ feeling it again? Was he feeling the same thing _she_ was? Or. . .

Leia's breath caught in her throat.

Were _two_ things about to go wrong?!

A faint noise sounded in her ears. Was it the buzzing? No. . .it sounded like a voice. And. . .it sounded like it was saying. . .

"Leia. Leia! _Leia!_ " Luke was yelling, simultaneously snapping his fingers next to her ear.

"Huh? What?" Leia finally said. While trying to shake herself out of her own thoughts, the Princess stumbled and landed on the ground. Instead of getting back up, she stayed there.

"Uh, have you seen the speeder yet?" Luke asked.

"Mm-mmm." she responded, shaking her head.

"Lost in thought again, huh?"

"Mm-hmm."

"What is it this time?"

"Don't worry about it." Leia drew a circle in the sand with her finger.

"Hey, if it's gonna affect whether I get home or not, I _will_ worry about it!"

"It's my problem. Not yours."

" _Problem?_ Be a little more specific."

"No."

"Yes."

"Which part of NO do you not understand? The 'N', or the 'O'?"

"Leia, we can't just stop every time you _drown_ yourself with your own thoughts."

"But what if something horrible happens?" Leia was now anxiously scribbling lines in the sand.

Now Luke was thoroughly confused.

"Something horrible?" he asked, sitting down with her. She was forced to stop scribbling.

"Yes! I've been getting that bothersome feeling all day! It won't leave! It has to _mean_ something!"

"Ohhh, so that's what this is about."

"Uh, _yeah_ ," Leia answered, as if to say, "Wasn't it obvious?"

Luke nodded in understanding.

Needless to say, both teens were equally baffled at their consistent foreshadowing feelings. Yet, neither one had figured it out yet. Cliché, don't you think?

"Well," Luke began, "I don't blame you. I've been feeling strange ever since we left the ship." He had Leia's full attention.

"Really? Me too!"

"It's just this feeling of dread. . .or maybe a feeling of danger? I haven't figured it out yet."

"Same here. It just gets stronger and stronger, until—"

Leia stopped in the middle of her sentence, eyes wide. Luke matched her expression and rapidly scurried to his feet.

"Do you hear that?" Leia asked, practically whispering. Luke only nodded. He snatched Leia's hand and yanked her to her feet in seconds.

Without even needing to communicate, they both started running.

As they ran, Luke asked a number of questions at once.

"What was that noise? Was it a voice? What were they saying? Where are we going? How are you running so fast?"

Leia answered them just as quickly.

"Han, yes, he was yelling my name, away from here, and fear-induced energy. Keep going!"

After another minute or so of jogging through throngs of people, the friends realized they had been running in the _wrong_ direction. Unfortunately, the realization dawned on them a little too late. And by a little, I mean a _lot._

Luke crashed directly into Han, sending both boys to the ground. Leia skidded to a halt and drew in a sharp breath. Luke only had time to blink before he was pulled harshly to his feet.

Leia began running at a strictly inhuman pace as Luke yelled (as fast as he could), "Nicemeetingyoubye!" to Han.

Speaking of Han, the poor pilot had barely got a chance to assess the situation. But he did catch a blurry glance of a retreating Leia. She was dragging a very resistant boy along with her, who, Han thought, must be Luke.

Before he could process his own thoughts or actions, Han was off like a bullet. He wasn't gonna let those kids run off _again._

Leia and Luke were panting like wild dogs at this point. They tried turning corners to throw Han off, but whenever they looked behind them, the smuggler was always mere yards away.

"Why don't we just stop running!" Luke said between breaths.

"Because I wanna live!" Leia yelled back, never slowing her pace.

"What if we—"

"NOW ISN'T A GOOD TIME FOR A DISCUSSION!" Leia interrupted. Luke knew better than to prod her any further.

Mos Eisley was a fairly decent-sized town. So, when two teenagers fleeing another person darted through the streets. . .it was hard not to notice.

Several residents were shoved out of the way by Leia or Luke, only getting a, "Sorry!" or an, "I'm trying to make a getaway here!" as an apology.

Their plan of escape was working perfectly until they turned another corner. There, towering several feet above them, was Chewbacca the Wookiee. Both Luke and Leia let out a very undignified scream. They didn't have time to turn and run. By the time they had even figured out what was happening, the Wookiee had latched his paws around their arms.

Leia struggled aggressively to get free, but Luke seemed frozen with shock. Leia was so desperate to get loose that she began climbing up Chewbacca's body. She actually got up to his stomach by the time Han showed up.

As soon as the young pilot turned the corner, he brought himself to an abrupt stop. Leia was apparently trying to climb his copilot, and Luke was dangling by one arm. If Han wasn't so upset at the kids, he would have found the sight comical.

The sight of Leia, though, really _did_ cause Han to break out into laughter.

"Need some help there, Pal?" he asked, leaning on the wall for support through his laugh-attack. The Wookiee growled a negative reply, though it was obvious that Leia was getting on his nerves.

While Han recovered from his laughing fit, Chewie managed to pry Leia off of him. Luke had regained his senses and was now pulling determinedly to free himself. Luke and Leia were shouting and struggling violently.

"All right, knock it off, you two," Han demanded. Chewbacca roared an agreement.

"No! Go away! Go. . .go _steal_ some illegal objects! Go anywhere but here!" Leia yelled, defiance coating her voice.

"Happy to see me, I guess? Yeah, nice to see you too," Han sarcastically replied.

"I am _not_ happy to see you, Flyboy! Tell your _pet_ to put me _down!_ That's an order!" Leia shouted. Han seemed amused.

"An order? What are you, some sort of princess?"

"Very funny," Leia said in a voice that definitely labeled it as _not funny._ "I DEMAND you to leave me alone! I _like_ it here!"

Han's eyes inspected her current attire. Leia could practically taste the remark that was coming.

"Ya know, if you wouldn't have said anything, I might not've noticed you were the same Leia!" Han said, half-grinning.

"Yeah, that was the point. I'm supposed to blend in, not look good."

"Was that an insult?" Luke said, referring to the way he was also dressed.

Han had (up until this point) not payed much attention to Luke. A brief once-over told him that the boy had most definitely lived here his whole life.

"So you're Luke, huh?" Han asked, squinting at the native.

"Yeah, that's me. You must be Han. I've heard a lot about you."

Leia promptly swung her leg over and nailed Luke's shin with her foot.

Chewbacca tried to put more space between the two kids to prevent further conflict.

"Oh, really? I figured the Princess missed me. I'm not surprised she was going on and on and—"

"I was _not_ talking about you," Leia said.

"Yeah, right. That's a topic for another time. Right now, we need to talk about why you ran off to get yourself killed out here!"

Leia glared at him and said, "If I wanted to kill myself, I would've jumped off of your ego and fell to your IQ level!"

Han opened his mouth, but no words came out. You could almost hear the smoke coming out of his ears.

"Alright, that's it, Your Worship. Chewie, let's go."

Chewbacca obeyed and followed his friend, dragging Luke and Leia along with him. They protested strongly, and loudly.

After they were a few minutes into their walk, something shiny caught Leia's eye. She tried to stop, but Chewbacca was forcing them to match his pace.

"Hey! Chewbacca! Stop!" she yelled. He didn't listen.

"CHEWIE! I see something!" she exclaimed, digging her heels into the sand. This time, the Wookiee stopped moving. Luke and Leia's heads swiveled to look slightly behind them.  
Leia was the first one to realize what they were seeing.

"Leia? What is it?" Han asked, walking back towards them.

The Princess didn't want to believe her eyes.

 _What are THEY doing here?_

"Leia!" Han said, now standing next to her.

Leia's answer came out as a confused whisper.

"Stormtroopers."

 **A/N: ...EEEEEEE! Okay. Calm down, Lia.**

 **Yes, that's right. Stormtroopers. In Tatooine. In Mos Eisley. Coincidence? I THINK NOT.**  
 **So. Han has entered the story once more. I gotta say, I missed the guy. Even though it's a little awkward to write a boys character, he's a fun one, that's for sure.**

 **And LEIA with those sassy remarks! Yikes! (I used one of those insults in school once. Don't tell anybody, tho).**  
 **BIG ROUND OF APPLAUSE to a certain FFN reviewer. . .they correctly guessed who said that one ominous line! VADER. Yes, I said VADER.**

 **Get excited, people. Big stuff is about to go down with the story.**  
 **ALSO. Uploading this story to FFN is verrrrry tricky. Something has been funky with the bold and italic text, so sorry about that. I'll see if I can fix that.**  
 **So yeah! Hold onto your hats! Stuff is about to get real ;)**

 **-Lia**


	21. Chapter 21: Say What?

**A/N: hello again! This chapter is a doozy, for sure. There's some action, some smart remarks, some sarcastic stormtroopers, and some scary stuff about Vader. I won't ramble this time, I promise. So, without further ado, here ya go!**

"What?!" yelled Luke and Han. The pilot pushed his way past Leia to get a better look. He was no fan of Imperials, and they were no fan of _him._

Leia's statement was proven true when, a few buildings away, four stormtroopers marched by in perfect unison. Their glistening, white armor made them stand out like a splotch of paint on a blank canvas. It was impossible to miss them, and no one did. Pretty much everyone in the village turned their heads to gawk at the troopers.

And as you may know, Imperial stormtroopers don't just parade through a Tatooine sand village for no reason. Very rarely are they ever _on_ Tatooine.

"What are _stormtroopers_ doing in Mos Eisley?" Luke asked, his voice lacking any sort of concern. He sounded vaguely curious, but not at all panicked.

"They're after me!" Han and Leia synchronized. They got confused and stared at each other. Together, they asked, "They're after you?"

Han pulled Leia behind the corner again.

"Why in the _galaxy_ would stormtroopers be looking for _you?_ " Han demanded, pinning Leia in one place with his hand.

"Okay, _first_ of all, move your hand or you lose your hand."

Han obeyed.

"Second, it's _completely_ possible that my parents sent them after me! They might've gotten desperate enough! I mean, normally they would never—"

"It's the _Empire,_ not the Child Protection Agency!"

"They'd make exceptions for royalty."

"How do you know? Has this happened before?"

"Not to me, but I've seen it on the HoloNet."

"So lemme get this straight. _You_ think the _Empire_ is looking for you, because apparently your _parents_ told them to?"

"Yes!" Leia gestured for him to be quieter.

"You're hopeless."

"I know. Why do you think the Empire is looking for _you_?"

Han cocked an eyebrow as if to say, "Why do _you_ think?"

Leia threw in a guess.

"Because you're banned from, like, four different systems?"

Han rolled his eyes.

"Close enough."

Luke poked his head around the corner.

"Guys," he said urgently, "this isn't the time for _romance_."

Leia looked like she could've killed him. In fact, she would've taken a flying leap at Luke if Han hadn't stopped her.

Luke took a few steps back but didn't seem too affected. He continued.

"The troopers are looking for something. They keep stopping and talking to different people. Now might be a good time to leave."

Leia heartily agreed.

"Sounds good," she said. "I'm almost _positive_ that they're looking for me!"

"Princess, those chances are highly unlikely," Han said, rolling his eyes.

"However 'unlikely' it is," the princess responded, making air quotes, "I _really_ should leave. And you guys are coming with me."

Luke nodded dutifully while Han silently disagreed. But, if Han was gonna be honest, those brown eyes of hers had him hooked since day one. Sometimes he really hated himself.

Chewbacca made a low growling noise that neither Luke nor Leia understood. Han, however, understood every word.

"They're coming. We gotta—"

Han was interrupted by none other than the small group of stormtroopers.

Leia instinctively hid behind Chewbacca, just in time. Luke just stood there next to Han. The farm boy had never encountered stormtroopers up close before. . .he was terrified.

"Let me do the talking," the pilot whispered to Luke. Luke had no problem with that whatsoever.

"Sir, we're looking for a girl that fits this description," the trooper leader said. He proceeded to hold up an exact portrait of Leia. She let out an internal scream from behind the Wookiee — they were definitely looking for her.

"This is Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan. She's a girl of thirteen years, with brown hair and brown eyes. Her parents are Bail and Breha Organa, the Viceroy and Queen of Alderaan. We have very strict orders to find her and bring her back."

Luke's eyes widened, but Han's expression was one of confusion. He decided to at least _attempt_ a decent lie.

"A _Princess_? Gee, I hope she's okay. Nah, I haven't seen her around these parts. It'd be pretty stupid of her to run off to a place like this."

The trooper cocked his head.

"Run off? What makes you say that?"

Han realized his mistake a tad too late.

"Oh, did I say she ran off? That's not what I meant. It was just a. . .just a theory. The Princess is known for running away, ya know."

"She is? How would you know? Do you know the Princess?"

The stormtrooper's voice was laced with suspicion now. Leia cringed and pressed closer to Chewbacca's back. If there weren't Imperial troops four feet away from her, she'd be kicking Han in the shin.

"Know _her?_ A _Princess_? No way. I just have my suspicions. I bet she's still on Alderaan. That's just a guess, though."

"Hmm. Our orders come from the very top. We were _told_ to search Tatooine."

 _From the very top?_ Leia wondered. _My parents aren't the 'very top'. Not in terms of the whole galaxy, anyway._

Han seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"The very top, huh? I know who that is, but why don't you tell me? That way, I can see if you're right," he said.

Leia smacked her forehead — something she seemed to be doing a lot around these people.

The trooper was beginning to look impatient.

"Our orders come from Lord Vader himself, sir. Any common Imperial citizen would already _know_ that."

" _Ohhhh_ , Lord Vader? As in, Lord _Darth_ Vader?"

"Yes, sir."

"Wow, you guys are way more formal than you used to be."

"It's part of the job, sir. What's your name? We need to file a report for each person we question."

Han stopped and gave a sort of frown.

"Sir? Your name?" the troop leader repeated.

"Uh. . .Solo."

"Is that your first or last name?"

No reply.

"Sir? We don't have all day."

"First."

"Last name, please."

"Don't have one. It's just Solo."

"Yeah, right. Let me guess — you work alone?"

"If you're finally making an attempt at humor, sure."

Han wasn't positive, but he was pretty sure he could hear the stormtrooper sigh.

"Thanks. You can go about your day, citizen," the leader finally said. The group of soldiers began walking away to someone else. Leia inched out from behind her hiding place.

"That. Was. Too. Close," she growled through clenched teeth. "They could've been smart and recognized you as a criminal! You should've given a fake name!"

"Like what?"

"I don't know, but you could've done better than _that_ performance."

Although, Leia was pleased to now know Han's last name as well. If that really _was_ part of his name. Either way, she liked it. Han Solo.

"GUYS!" Luke interfered. "Did you hear what he said?"

Leia looked confused.

"Yeah, of course. He said a lot. You'll have to be more specific."

"He said their orders came from _Vader._ "

At that, Leia's face lost some of its color.

Even though Leia had lived a strictly sheltered life on Alderaan, she had heard of Vader. Darth Vader was the most feared person in the galaxy. Possibly even _beyond_ the galaxy.

If you hadn't heard of Lord Vader, you must've been living under a rock. And even then, you would've heard _something_ about him. He was the embodiment of evil, the Prince of Pain, the Lord of Darkness. He was the main character of every ghost story, the one who haunts every nightmare. And he was second to only the Emperor.

Who was the Emperor, you ask? Emperor Palpatine was only slightly worse than Vader. The Emperor was the ring leader of the most evil organization in the universe: the Galactic Empire. It was supposed to unite the planets and initiate peace throughout the galaxy. However, it did the exact opposite. The Empire kept planets in line using only brute force.

Millions of people were miserable because of the Empire. Leia, for one, was very lucky to live on a neutral planet. Or so she had thought. If Imperial troops had come looking for her, had her parents asked for their help? The stormtroopers hadn't been very specific. Apparently, their orders were to 'bring her back'. Back where? Back home? Or back. . .

Leia gasped. Back to. . .Vader?

Leia's thoughts blurred together in a frenzy.

 _What's going on?! Why would Darth Vader be looking for me?! What did I do this time? Whatever it was, is it really THAT BAD? Maybe I'm over exaggerating?_

Leia paused a moment to calm down. There had to be a reason for all of this. What had she done recently that would merit the attention of Lord Vader?

She had run away, but how would he know? It's possible that her parents had enlisted Imperial help, but her Father had no love for the Empire. Would he really ask them to go look for his daughter? Did he trust them enough to do that? She doubted it.

What other options were there? Besides running away from home, there's _no_ way Vader could've learned about any of that other stuff. Right?

Perhaps Leia would have to break down the situation a little more.  
Before she could, Luke shook her out of her thought-trance.

"Leia? We need to go. The troopers are looking this way."

Luke's statement was proven true when Leia nervously glanced behind them. The stormtroopers were talking to the infamous bartender that we know so well. He was pointing in the direction of Leia's group, and the troopers were throwing occasional glances their way.

That was definitely enough to make Leia uncomfortable. She'd have to figure it all out later.

"Okay. Let's go."

They all headed a good distance away from the intimidating stormtroopers. On the way, Leia noticed something in the corner of her eye.

"Hey!" she called, skidding to a halt. "I found our speeder!"

"Wait, really?" Luke asked, backtracking to Leia. Just like Leia had said, the rusty speeder was sitting just outside the town's boundary, where they had left it.

"Okay, everybody in. And this time, Han can drive. I'm not going through that again," Leia said, shoving Han towards the front seat. Leia sat in the passenger's seat while Luke and Chewie sat in the back.

Although, since there wasn't really a backseat, the boy and the Wookiee just kind of perched on the back of the speeder. Luke didn't look happy about it — he had to awkwardly grip the sides of the vehicle to avoid toppling off. Chewbacca found this hilarious.

"Have you ever. . .uh, do you know how to drive?" Leia asked, eyeing the steering wheel with suspicion.

"Can't be much different than piloting a ship, right?" Han answered. His attempt at assurance did nothing to calm Leia's nerves. If anything, they made her nerves worse.

Suddenly, four stormtroopers rounded the corner and stopped next to the speeder.

 _Dang it._

"Halt, in the name of the Empire!" the troop leader called. He noticed Leia sitting in the speeder before she could duck or otherwise hide.

"Hey! You're the Princess! I have to ask that you come with us!"

Leia poked her head out from behind Han.

"Uh. . .no thanks, actually. _I_ have to ask that _you_ go back to your own business!"

"This _is_ our business! It's our orders, Miss!"

"Then you can blame it on _me_ when Darth Vader gets mad at you. Han! GO!"

Han started the speeder and accidentally put it in reverse. One of the stormtroopers started firing, and a bright red blaster bolt hit Han's side of the vehicle.

"Hey!" Luke yelled. "My uncle's gonna kill me!"

The rest of the troopers began firing their blasters at the group of friends. Muttering foreign curse words, Han turned left, sped up, and they were off.

 ** _~•~_**

When the four arrived at Luke's home, the boy was hesitant to leave the speeder.

"I don't know," he answered, when Leia asked what was wrong. "I'm gonna get in a lotta trouble. And I don't want you to get in trouble too."

"Aw, thanks. But, honestly, I was gonna blame myself anyway. It's my fault, when you think about it."

So, all four of them headed inside to let Owen and Beru know their nephew was back. . .more or less safe and sound.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Today has been an interesting day, to say the least. I'm really tired, so I'm gonna sum this up as best as I can._

 _To put a long story short, Han found us. Maybe that's the feeling I was getting! On the bright side, maybe I won't have to deal with that feeling anymore. Actually. . .quite a few things went wrong._

 _Han found us, and he seemed relieved and annoyed at the same time. Even though I'd really like to hate him, it was nice to see him again. But don't tell him I said that. His ego is big enough as it is. Seriously._

 _Then, stormtroopers found us. And here comes the scary part: they were looking for someone. They were looking for ME! Yes, ME! And they said their orders came from. . .brace yourself. . .DARTH VADER. I'll touch on more of that later._

 _They let us off the hook because Han threw them off track by being annoying. Also, Han's last name is Solo. Ironic, isn't it? Because he's not solo? Never mind._

 _We were doing okay until that stupid BARTENDER sold me out! The troopers were on to us, but we found the speeder! Let's just say this: troopers found me, they fired at us, we sped away (with Han at the wheel)._

 _We came back to Luke's house, and his aunt and uncle were super happy to see him again. They were pretty happy that I was okay too, but I can't shake the feeling that there's something they aren't telling me._

 _Wait till Owen sees his speeder. We purposely left that part out of the conversation. . ._

 _We explained as little as possible, and as fast as we could. They just seemed happy we were home._

 _I just can't stop thinking about Vader. He's the most terrifying person to ever exist! And he's looking for ME!_

 _Wait. Wait. Maybe. . .maybe that's the feeling I was getting! And when did the feeling start bothering me?_

 _After the toolbox incident! That's it. I figured it out. And tomorrow, I need to tell Luke._

 _-Leia_

 **A/N: Done already? ;)**  
 **So. Leia is gonna tell Luke, is she? Well, I wonder how that's gonna go. You'll find out in three days, hehe.**

 **Completely irrelevant fact, but I'm actually unhealthily obsessed with Star Wars EU books. I just finished one called Splinter of the Minds Eye...it was actually the first STAR WARS EU book ever written! If you're looking for something to read, give it a try!**  
 **Anyhoo. Hope you're all having a great day/night (night for me)! If you want, give this chapter a review! Now I'll letcha get on with your life. Byeeeee!**  
 **-Lia**


	22. Chapter 22: Connect The Dots

**A/N: WOOHOO another chapter is up! The moment you've all been (probably) waiting for. . .**  
 **Leia tells Luke about her force-sensitivity!**

 **They have a really interesting conversation, in which a few things are revealed. Also, Han finds out something that may or may not make you gasp, hehe. ON TO THE CHAPTER! See ya at the bottom! (LOLLL IM SO LAME)**

Leia woke up before the Suns had risen the next morning—she was getting used to an early routine. The Tatooine sky was still dark and peppered with faintly twinkling stars. The only evidence of morning was a faint yellow glow in the distance.

The Princess hopped silently out of Luke's bed and tiptoed to the only window in the room. Resting her elbows on the window ledge, Leia gazed at the dazzling spectacle outside. The Suns rose slowly, and one at a time, they peeked over the edge of the horizon, bathing the sandy terrain in sunlight.

She was briefly reminded of a similar view outside her own window, which she had left behind many days ago. But now, standing there quietly, a small feeling of homesickness began to creep it's way into Leia's mind. Try as she might, she couldn't push the feeling back down.

For a moment, she almost felt like she _was_ at home, in her bedroom's bay window. That seemed like it was a long time ago. And, truth be told, it had been. That was back when things weren't so complicated.

The last time she had watched the sunrise had been. . .maybe three years ago. Then, that carefree time in her life had been cut short. Things started interfering with simple pleasures like stargazing or waking up when _she_ wanted. Soon Leia had to get up and prepare for company, or begin studies.

Little by little, Leia's life had become jammed with meetings, dinners, and tutors. 'Preparation', everyone called it. Preparation for when she was Queen—something she'd never asked for or wanted very much.

Here on Tatooine, people lived such simple lives. _They_ didn't have to worry about impressing nobility or memorizing history. They only had their small business to worry about.

They got up, did chores, and then they were free to do as they pleased! Oh, how Leia wished her life could be that simple. A life where things were uncomplicated and easy, and _she_ could decide what she wanted to do with her life.

But no. She had made matters worse by abandoning her entire family, her home, and her planet. And for what? Leia had to pause and think.

The answer showed itself almost instantly.

 _Freedom._

Leia had left so she could be free. Free like the people of Tatooine. Free like the pilots that could explore the galaxy on a whim. Free like the billions of stars that lit up the night sky.

Instead of freedom, she had got an unhealthy and unexpected amount of _stress_. Now, the galaxy's most feared tyrant was after her. Talk about a major _backfire._

 _None of this would've happened if I would've just stayed home that night._

But. . .then she would've never met Luke, or even Han. She would've never crashed face first into a Wookiee, fooled a smuggler, visited Tatooine, driven a speeder, got a job at a cantina, or be fired at by Imperial stormtroopers!

Even though things were spiraling out of control, a little spontaneity never hurt anyone, right? Leia should've known that stowing away was an inevitable train wreck. But she had done it. And despite all the extra problems that had come with it, she was _glad_ she did it.

Yet, there was still that matter of Vader. The answer had been sitting in Leia's mind for some time now, and she had to tell someone. Who better to tell than Luke? He would understand, or at least _try_ to understand.

Unfortunately, a glance at the boy told her that he was still sound asleep.

 _Oh well. This is important. Sleep will have to wait._

Leia stepped carefully over to the sleeping form of Luke. Considering the fact that he was sprawled out on the floor in a very awkward position, it was a wonder that the boy was even _comfortable._

The Princess knelt down next to him and gently nudged his arm. Luke responded by rolling onto his stomach.

"Ugh," Leia groaned, most just amused.

"Luke," she whispered. "Luke, wake up."

She tried jiggling his shoulder. This method proved successful.

"Hmm? What?" Luke said hoarsely, sitting up. After rubbing his blurry eyes, Luke looked toward the window.

"Leia! The Suns haven't even risen yet! What are you doing up?"

Leia motioned for him to scoot closer. Luke noted that she seemed more serious than normal.

When Luke complied, Leia began what was going to be a rather long explanation.

"I need to tell you something important. Remember that time that Han's toolbox. . .fell. . .on me?"

Luke nodded, uncertain of where the conversation was headed and still half-asleep. He was doing his best to pay attention.

"Well, right before it fell off the shelf, I. . .I had some sort of. . .vision."

Even though the room was void of most light, Leia could feel Luke's eyes widen. She didn't know if he was confused or genuinely shocked—it was too dark to tell.

"In it, I _saw_ the toolbox fly off the shelf. . . _before_ it actually happened."

"So. . .Luke began, squinting. "You. . .predicted the future?"

"I—I guess so?"

"That sounded kind of uncertain." Luke rubbed his eyes that were still foggy with sleep.

"Well. . .I don't have a lot of experience with _visions._ You should know that."

"So, what do you think happened?"

"I don't know! A few seconds after that, the box seemed to run off the shelf. Moments later, I was on the floor!"

"But. . .how does that work?"

Leia moved herself to a cross legged position and threw Luke a significant glance before continuing.

"I. . .I don't know. But I know what's been happening, and I thought I should let you know."

"Okayyyy. . .go ahead."

"And whatever you do, don't judge? Okay?"

"Sure thing."

Sunlight was now slowly creeping over the floor as warmth poured through the window.

"Okay. Ever since I was really young, I've had this. . .well, I don't want to call it a power, so I'll call it a _gift_. That gift enabled me to do things that many other people couldn't."

"Like what?" Luke asked, becoming suddenly interested. The tiredness was all but gone from his eyes.

"Oh, small things, mostly. Things like levitating small objects, anticipating things before they happened. . .stuff like that."

Luke took on a thoughtful look for a moment. Leia didn't notice.

She continued with an exhausted sigh.

"I don't know, Luke. I just really needed to tell someone. And that isn't even the _whole_ story."

"It's not? Well, then keep going."

Leia eyed him carefully, as if searching for something in his expression. Luke pretended not to catch on.

"I think Vader's looking for me."

Luke blinked several times.

 _Vader?_ Looking for _her?_

"Leia, you don't know that. What if your parents asked the Empire for help?"

The Princess shook her head. "No. That's what I thought at first, too. But they wouldn't do that. They'd come after me themselves, or send someone from _Alderaan._ Not stormtroopers."

"That doesn't matter. This is _Darth Vader_ we're talking about! He doesn't even know you exist!"

Leia crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh, yes he does! I've met that no-good, black-hearted Sith Lord before. Back when I was very young."

"What? _Really_?!" Luke's tone lacked the necessary fright that Leia had been expecting.

"Yes, _really._ I don't remember a lot of it, but it happened."

"But why would that matter?"

Leia took a deep breath.

"I have the same power as Vader."

 **~•~**

In the living room, Beru and Owen were up early and deep in conversation. The topic of their discussion was none other than the young Princess of Alderaan.

"It's _got_ to be her!" Beru insisted, gesturing for emphasis. Owen gently, but firmly, disagreed.

"No, no, Beru, that's not her. That's _impossible_. What are the odds that she would end up here? _Now_?"

Han, walking back from the kitchen (it seemed everyone was up early this morning), paused just outside the doorway to the living room. Owen and Beru's conversation drifted out towards him. His curiosity got the best of him, and he chose to eavesdrop. A smuggler's ethics were very rarely in order.

"Owen," Beru continued. "You _know_ it's her. It's Anakin's daughter. And she has Padmé's eyes. Don't deny it."

"I'm not denying it," Owen admitted, solemnly. "I just don't understand it."

Han quickly became confused. Since when was Leia's father called 'Anakin'?

"She's a threat to Luke's safety," Owen was saying. "If she finds out, _he'll_ find out."

Beru shook her head.

"They won't. Yet. . .I almost wish I could tell them." She sounded regretful.

"Don't think like that. Now isn't a good time to tell them all that. It would overwhelm them—confuse the poor kids. And. . .nobody should have to deal with that kind of news."

Han was doubly as confused now. What kind of news was so horrible that they couldn't tell Luke and Leia? Those kids were pretty tough. They seemed like they could handle pretty much anything. And Leia didn't _seem_ like a danger to anyone.

"You're right, I suppose," Beru admitted. "But she's a nice girl. If the boy _has_ to have a twin sister, I'm glad it's her." The two of them exchanged grim smiles.

Han froze.

 _Twin?! SISTER?!_

 ** _~•~_**

Leia and Luke had been silent for a few minutes. Luke sat, rigid, trying to process the words Leia had spoken. The Princess, though internally scared of what Luke's reaction would be, looked surprisingly calm.

Finally, Luke swallowed and spoke.

"W—what. . .what do you mean by that?" he said, frowning the slightest bit. After all that waiting, it seemed odd that Luke only had _one_ question.

"I _mean,_ I can. . .well, I can potentially do what Vader can do."

"What?! Leia, you're not _evil_!"

Leia blinked her rapidly widening eyes.

"What? I never said—"

"You said you have _Vader's power._ He's evil!"

"But that's not what I meant! I just meant that we—ugh! I don't know how to explain it!"

"Well, does that power have a name?"

Leia looked at the ceiling and tried to recall any memory of a name for her 'talent'.

"Yes," she finally confirmed, "but I don't know what it is. There's definitely a name for it. I'm sure I was told at one point, but I can't remember."

Luke hummed thoughtfully.

If we were to switch to Luke's perspective on things, we might find out that he was having the same problem as Leia. Luke had the exact _same_ power; he just didn't know how to tell her. Would she be shocked?  
Happy that someone else shared her abilities? Mad that he didn't tell her sooner? There was only one way to find out.

"Hey, Leia?" Luke asked hesitantly.

"Hmm?" She turned back to face her friend.

"You know all that stuff about the power you have?"

"Yeah, I just told you—"

"I _completely_ understand."

"I know you do. That's why I told you. I knew you'd understand and not judge me or anything."

"But do you know _why_ I understand so well?"

Leia's face immediately lit up with a smile.

"Of _course_ I know. You have that power too, right?"

Luke started to say something, but he closed his mouth when he registered her response. His bright blue eyes got bigger then they'd ever been. This only made Leia's smile wider.

Luke managed to choke out, "W—what?"

The Princess leaned against the side of the bed.

"Oh, yeah. I figured it out a while ago, actually. That's why you had a bad feeling at the same time I did. It's also partly why I was so scared to tell you! I didn't know how you'd react."

Luke let out half of a shaky laugh.

"Wow," he said. Leia nodded.

"It's a pretty good early birthday present—finding out you're not the only teenager to have this gift," Leia said, still smiling.

"Yeah, I guess. Hey, you're birthday is soon then?"

"Yeah. In a few weeks actually."

Luke got an odd look on his face.

"Really? That's weird. Mine too."

Leia raised her eyebrows.

"Cool! Maybe we're birthday twins!" she said, laughing.

Han, who had been listening to this conversation for a few minutes, shook his head in disbelief.

"Poor kids. They have no idea."

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _The day started as a happy one, so that's good. I finally collected enough courage to tell Luke about my "gift" or whatever you choose to call it._

 _He took the news pretty well, actually. Almost TOO well. He then started explaining why he understood my situation, but I beat him to it._  
 _See, I figured out a few days ago that he had the very same power that I do! I know! It's amazing!_

 _Luke was feeling weird at the same time as me. We both felt like something bad was going to happen. Plus (I didn't tell him this part), I can kind of FEEL that he shares this power. I don't know how to explain it, exactly. I just kind of feel a connection with him that I've never felt with anybody else. I mean, what else could that mean?_

 _I also found out that Luke and I share a birthday month! Not sure of the exact day his birthday is, but it's in a few weeks, just like mine! I told him that we could possibly be birthday twins (that means we were born on the same day, not that we're literal twins). How cool would that be?_

 _Anyway, it's time to head outside and "start the chores", as Owen Lars says. I've built up a sort-of immunity to this heat, but it still bothers me. Maybe I'll watch Luke do his chores. The last time I helped, I felt like I was going to die from heat exhaustion or something. I'll watch from a safe distance, you know?_

 _-Leia_

 **A/N: Well. Whaddya think, guys and gals? Will Han tell Luke and Leia that they're twins? We'll have to wait and see.**

 **I'm SO EXCITED for future chapters! I'll be introducing a special guest, and some other stuff is gonna happen. . .EEEEK IM SO EXCITED! But, alas, it has to wait until next time ;)**

 **Hope you liked the chapter! If ya did, don't forget to leave a comment and all that! :)**  
 **See ya next time!**  
 **-Lia**


	23. Chapter 23: An Old Friend

**A/N: Hola amigos! So nice of you to join us this fine day! I gotta make this quick cuz I have some stuff to do before I head off to a cow farm for the day (cows; I know). So without further ado, lets goooooo!**

Leia sat in the soft, warm sand while Luke did his "farm boy work" on a moisture vaporater.

It had only been a day since the two teens confessed their abilities to one another, and they were already more comfortable around each other. Leia and Luke took pleasure in knowing something that supposedly no one else knew.

The two of them shared several knowing glances throughout the course of the day. Little did they know, Han Solo was in on their secret. He was just having a hard time debating whether he should _tell_ them or not.

When he had "overheard" Beru and Owen's early-morning conversation, there weren't words to describe how shocked he'd been. Not only were Luke and Leia brother and sister. . .they were _twins._

To be completely honest, Han cursed himself for not figuring it out sooner. Each kid shared certain personality traits, and they got along surprisingly well for "strangers". In fact, if Han was anyone else, he might've guessed they were best friends. The only thing that still confused him was the teens' parentage.

Leia's parents were Bail and Breha Organa, Royal Leaders of Alderaan. Luke lived with his aunt and uncle on a desert moisture farm, and he'd never mentioned his parents. Was Luke really the _prince_ of Alderaan?

Han didn't want to guess anymore. He decided to be straightforward and ask Leia a few questions. But without revealing anything. . .

 _This ought to be fun._

 **~•~**

Han found the boy and girl out doing Luke's chores. Well, Leia was only _watching_ , but Luke seemed hard at work.

The pilot strolled over to Leia and casually sat down next to her. Instead of scooting away like Han thought she would, Leia stayed where she was, a smile on her face.

The girl looked a good deal happier than she'd been lately. Though, when Han didn't say anything for a while, Leia began to feel uncomfortable.

"Uh. . ." she prompted. "Was there something you were about to say?"

"What makes you think I came over here to chat?"

"The fact that you keep staring at me. Unless there's another reason. . .care to explain?"

"Huh? No! I just. . .okay, can I ask you something?"

The look on Leia's face said "no", but she ended up saying, "Sure."

"Remind me again who your parents are."

Leia's brown eyes visibly narrowed. She knew that she had told him this, so why was he asking again? There's no way he could've forgotten. What game was Han playing?

 _Whatever it is, I'll play along. For now._

"Which parents?" Leia asked, seemingly unmoved by the question.

Han, however, was thrown momentarily off course.

 _Which_ parents? As far as he was concerned, Leia only had _one_ set of parents. But, he'd been wrong before.

"Uh. . .I wasn't aware there was more."

"Oh, yeah. I can't believe I didn't tell you! I'm adopted. So—"

"You're _adopted_?!" Han exclaimed, scrambling to his feet. "Why didn't I know about this?"

Leia took on a vaguely thoughtful expression. She didn't seem at all phased, or even surprised at Han's reaction. Had she purposely kept this information from him? It seemed awfully vital to keep to oneself.

"I'm not sure," Leia said, craning her neck to look up at him. "I thought for _sure_ that I'd told you! Huh."

Han started to put the pieces together. Leia was adopted. Bail and Breha weren't her _real_ parents. So. . .where _were_ her real parents? And why did they split the twins up?

"I. . .I guess. . .who are your real parents, then?" asked Han. The Princess's demeanor dulled a little bit. It didn't look like she wanted to talk about it. To Han's surprise, she began to do just that.

"I don't really know. My Father tells me that they're not around anymore. Who knows, though? Maybe they're dead, and maybe not."

"But you don't know who they are?"

"Nope. Not a clue. Whenever I bring them up around my family, the topic gets changed right away.

"You don't even know their names?"

She shook her head.

"What they look like?"

Another negative shake.

"Father only says my mom looked like me. That's the only lead I have," she added, shrugging.

By now, Luke had finished whatever work he had been doing. When he noticed Han talking with Leia, he made his way over to them.

"Hey," he greeted. Leia and Han looked up from their conversation and synchronized, "Hey."

Luke sensed an awkward tinge to the two, but he pretended not to take notice. He knew how Leia got when it came to Han.

"So, Kid. What about you? Know anything about _your_ parents?" Han asked, his question now directed towards Luke.

The boy shook his head automatically. His situation was identical to Leia's: his family changed the subject anytime he mentioned his birth parents. Han wondered why the two teens hadn't pieced things together yet.

"Huh. I find that _weird_. Don't you?" Han asked, glancing back at Leia and Luke.

"You find what weird?" Leia asked, standing up to brush sand off of her borrowed tunic.

"That you guys both don't know anything about your parents. What? You don't think that's. . .I don't know. . .significant?"

Leia and Luke looked at each other, then back at Han.

"No," they both said, confusion evident in their tones.

Han face-palmed, at which time Luke and Leia shared another look—this time, a look of "Han's crazy".

 **~•~**

Once the trio arrived back at the Lars homestead, lunch was ready. Everyone ate hungrily except Leia, who had made it a habit to thoroughly inspect anything she put in her mouth. Today's midday meal was some sort of brown meat and a yellow vegetable. The Princess tried her best to keep the looks of disgust to a minimum. In order to keep the food in her stomach, Leia didn't ask what she was eating.

Later that day, Luke walked into his room to find Leia hanging upside down on his desk. All the blood had rushed to her face, turning it a soft shade of red.

"Leia? What are you—" he started to ask.

"It helps me think, okay? Don't judge me," Leia interjected.

 _Too late,_ Luke thought. But the internal judgement made itself known by the repelled look on Luke's face.  
Leia sighed and returned to her jumbled thoughts.

Hanging upside down had been a practice Leia started when she was very young. Oftentimes, her parents would find her dangling off the back of her bed, or the top of the fountain, on the day the Princess would be taking a test for school. They had let it slide the first few times, as they thought it was a "phase" that she would soon grow out of.

But, of course, it (like many other "phases") never did end. No one was quite sure why hanging upside down would help one think, but it improved the Princess's mood. Therefore, the palace staff had learned to accept it as a part of life.

Luke, however, begged to differ. To him, it was weird. And that's all there was to it. Weird. He never had the urge to hang upside down off of anything.

"What are you thinking about?" Luke asked, instead of, "Would you please get off my desk?"

"Oh, you know. Just contemplating the mystery that is my life. The usual," Leia replied, rolling her eyes. Luke felt like laughing, but was that the right response?

"What's so mysterious?" Luke asked.

He knew _exactly_ what was so mysterious. She was wondering about Vader, and was most likely more frightened than she'd ever admit.

"What _isn't_ mysterious?" was Leia's answer. "I still have a really bad feeling in the back of my mind, Vader wants me for whatever reason, I think I'm starting to get homesick, so on, so forth." She closed her eyes, as if it was all too stressful to bear anymore.

Luke came up with no better reply than, "Oh."

Who could blame the girl, really? She had made some pretty wild decisions lately, and somewhere along the way, Vader was alerted.

Luke knew the Toolbox Incident, or so it came to be called, was somehow connected to Vader's pursuit of Leia. If only the two knew more about the power that they shared.

The farm boy noticed that Leia was still hanging off of his desk. She was now gazing at him like _he_ was the crazy one. Well, he had technically been staring into space for the past couple minutes.

"You have a lot on your mind too, huh?" Leia inquired, taking on a sympathetic look.

"Yeah, you're right. Compared to your thoughts, mine seem pretty unimportant, though."

"Nah, no thought is unimportant."

After a moment of silence, Leia perked up. "Hey," she said, patting the space next to her. "Why don't you join me? We can contemplate life together."

Luke laughed, despite his attempts to be serious.

"All right, you won me over." Luke hopped onto his desk and mirrored Leia's upside down position, carefully leaning back so he was dangling.

"Feels good, right?" Leia asked.

"All I feel is dizzy."

 **~•~**

A cloaked figure made their way towards the small figure of the Lars homestead. Yes. The twins were definitely there. They were. . .happy. Good. They were friends; good friends. It was nice that they were getting along. That was important.

The figure approached the home.

 **~•~**

A knock got Owen Lars's attention.

"Now, who could that be?" Beru asked, looking up from her book.

"I'll get it," Owen offered.

When he opened the door, there stood none other than Obi-Wan (more commonly known as Ben) Kenobi.  
Owen resisted the urge to slam the door in the old man's face.

"I've come to see the twins," Kenobi stated matter-of-factly, with a smile. He didn't wait to get invited in; the man began stepping right through the doorway.

Owen held out his arm to block him.

"I'm sorry, I can't allow that. You're not welcome here. Luke is just fine. You can leave now."

Obi-Wan raised his eyebrows the slightest bit and said, "I'm well aware you're not fond of me, Owen. But my business here is necessary. Perhaps I wasn't very clear, so I'll rephrase my words. I _will_ see the twins."

Owen was caught off guard by Kenobi's directness. No, Owen didn't enjoy the old man's company. He was a hermit; a recluse; a danger to Luke and possibly Leia; and worst of all. . .a retired Jedi.

Nothing good could come out of a visit from this person. He could put crazy ideas in the children's heads. If anything, Old Ben had come to evaluate the kids—to observe them. It couldn't hurt to check.

"Why are you _really_ here?" Owen asked. His arm remained stretched across the doorway, forbidding Kenobi any entrance.

The old hermit sighed out of impatience.

"I'm here to do as I said. To see the twins."

Owen kept a skeptical eye on the man as he walked into the house. Kenobi disappeared into the hallway leading to Luke's room.

"I don't like this," Owen said to his wife.

"I don't either," she agreed. "But, you know it's probably for the best. Let's be honest. The kids would've run into the old man either way." Owen couldn't argue with that logic. Kenobi always did find a way.

 **~•~**

When the door to Luke's room opened, both teens assumed it to be Luke's uncle.

Leia and Luke had shifted their position to one that had them hanging off the desk, facing the floor instead of the ceiling. Their arms hung down and rested lightly on the floor in front of them. They actually looked pretty content, laughing at each other.

Obi-Wan had to smile at the two. They shared happy glances and said, simultaneously, "Don't judge."

"I won't," Kenobi said with a chuckle. The friends immediately recognized the voice as foreign. They tried to sit up, but dizziness took effect within one second of moving. Their upright position on the desk morphed into a more horizontal position on the floor.

"Ow. . ." Leia groaned, holding her head.

Luke was more concerned about the unknown man in his room.

"AHH!" he yelled. " _Stranger danger_!"

"Where?" Leia shouted. They both tried to stand up, but when they did, Luke crashed into Leia, which sent them back to the floor.

Obi-Wan let out a lighthearted laugh. Watching the twins was entertaining, he'd give them that.

"This isn't funny, old man!" Leia said, ever the fiesty one. "Explain yourself!"

"Allow me to introduce myself," Kenobi answered, amused. "My name is Ben. Ben Kenobi. Luke, I've been watching you for a long time. A long, long time. And Leia! I haven't been out of touch with your life either."

The Princess scooted backwards in shock.

"H—how. . .how do you know. . ."

"Your name? I was the first person to _hear_ your name. I think I'd remember it, even after all these years."

"But—"

"Ah, yes. It fills me with joy to see you two together again. It's been too long."

"'Again'?"

"Yes, of course. You've matured well, I see."

Leia whispered to Luke, "Oh. A creepy hermit-stalker who has been tracking our every move. That's. . .atmospheric."

"Indeed," Kenobi said.

"Hey!" Leia exclaimed. "Eavesdropping is rude!"

"Ah, and you should know. Eavesdropping is what got you to run off in the first place, correct?" the old man asked. Leia's pupils dilated.

"Y—yeah. . .I—I guess."

"Well, I've come to hopefully get you out of this mess you're in. We'll see how this goes."

"N—no kidding."

Luke looked back and forth between Kenobi and Leia.

"What about me?" he asked. Obi-Wan turned to Luke.

"If Vader finds Leia, you're in as much trouble as she is, Luke. Possibly even worse."

 **A/N: EEEEEP. What have I done? What should I do? A recap, you say? Okay.**

 **Obi-Wan Kenobi (the one and only) is now in Luke's bedroom. WHAAAAAT. Don't worry- Obi-Wan will be playing a major role. Maybe not yet, but soon. I wouldn't drag the poor guy into my story unless there was a good reason!**

 **Also, Luke and Leia aren't connecting the dots yet. For real. Like, c'mon guys. There's so many hints out there! It almost frustrates me, but then I remember I'm controlling the story...hehe. I have everything under control, so hold onto yo' hats.**

 **-Lia**


	24. Chapter 24: Complicated, Ain't It?

**A/N: Howdy, y'all! That sounded Southern, but I'm not Southern. I promise. If any of you are Southern, that's cool though!**

 **Anyway, here's the next chapter! I'm not gonna say ANYTHING about this chapter, 'cause I personally DESPISE spoilers. Therefore, go ahead and leap blindly into Chapter 24! WHEEE!**

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _My life just got a whole lot more complicated (which I didn't think was possible). Today, not only did Han bombard me with Parent Questions, but some wacky old man now claims a bunch of nonsense about me and Luke!_

 _He said all this stuff about "not seeing us together for a long time", and "Luke is in trouble if Vader finds me". I don't understand any of it. Seems a bit creepy to me._

 _So far, it's my impression that this guy has been living alone in the desert for a few years too long. How can I even trust what he's saying? What if he's just some crazy old man who's making up lies because he's not mentally stable?_

 _And if he IS telling the truth, what does it all mean? He said he was the FIRST PERSON to hear my NAME! Does that sound crazy, because I think it does!_

 _He couldn't have been there when I was born! It doesn't add up. He_ ** _was not_** _there. And if he somehow was. . .he would know who my birth parents are. I wonder if I should ask him. . ._

 _No. No, I can't. I won't ask him a single thing until he explains himself. He got as far as his name: Ben Kenobi. It sounds familiar, yet also new. AGH. And I thought I was confused before. I'm a million times more confused. Maybe a million and one, if you want to be really specific._

 _Luke, of course, trusts every word the man says. And why? Well, I think it's because Luke is, though the nicest person you'll ever meet, gullible to a fault. Naïve, if you will._

 _He'd believe me if I told him that I'm. . .oh, what's something completely outrageous? Oh, I know. He'd believe me if I said I was DARTH VADER'S daughter! He'd believe every word._

 _That's actually a horrible thought, now that I think about it. Darth Vader's daughter. Does he have kids? I don't think he does. If he does, they're probably just as evil as he is._

 _But all that stuff is completely off topic. Just a representative of how scatterbrained I am right now._

 _-Leia_

When the young Princess closed her journal, she looked up to see Ben Kenobi staring directly at her. His gaze, though warm and cheerful, was enough to make her squirm. And Leia never squirmed.

His face had an odd look on it. A soft smile that made him appear as if he knew something Leia did not. She didn't like it very much.

They hadn't left Luke's room, because Ben had said, "If you don't mind, I'd just like to watch you two. Pretend I'm not here." Leia didn't like that very much, either.

So, there they sat. Things had quickly become awkward with Kenobi watching their every move. It was hard to "act natural", as he had put it. The most natural thing Leia could do was whip out her journal and start writing. At least then she didn't have to think about Kenobi's eyes, boring into her soul.

The journaling didn't pass unnoticed by Obi-Wan.

"So," the older man started. "You keep a journal." It was more of a statement than a question.

"Uh, yes, Sir. I have for a few years now."

"Interesting. What led you to pick up the hobby?"

Leia looked away. She didn't remember it down to the very last detail, but there was a small story that went along with it. Was it too personal to share with a stranger, though?

"I sense your conflict. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Kenobi said.

From the other side of the room, Luke mumbled, "Creepy."

"No, it's fine," Leia said. "It's not _too_ personal or anything."

"Very well."

"It started back when I was. . .probably eight or nine years old. I wandered into my Father's study one day, because I wanted to help with his work. While I was in the room, I came across an old chest that held some of Father's old books and stuff. I didn't think he'd mind if I opened it, and he was occupied with business matters, plus, I was desperate to read something. So, I opened the chest. . .and this journal was the first thing I saw.

"I didn't know it was a journal, though. I just kinda thought it was another dusty, historical book. My Father turned around and saw me there. He moved to see what I was looking at. When Father noticed what it was, he got this. . .I don't know, this look of nostalgia or something on his face. He just took the book out and blew the dust off of it. I was still looking at it, so he asked if I wanted it. I said, 'Sure,' and I took it back to my room."

"When did you open it?" Kenobi asked, leaning forward curiously.

"I opened it the next day. I saw it was a notebook, so I didn't really use it. Then, when I turned eleven, I finally drug it out and started writing. It just turned into a hobby on its own, I guess."

"I see," Obi-Wan said. "Did you notice anything. . .say, _unusual_ about the book?"

Leia looked suspicious, but replaced the look with confusion.

"No, nothing unusual. A few pages were ripped out, that's all."

"How often do you write in it?"

"I don't know. Every day, when I can."

Leia was growing increasingly wary of this old hermit. Why was he so interested in her journaling hobby? Or maybe he was just interested in the journal itself? Either way, he was starting to get on her nerves.

"Hey, why are you asking so many questions about this?" Leia asked, gesturing to her journal. "I thought you wanted to _watch_ us."

Obi-Wan laughed. "Ah, yes. It's just that your journal belonged to your mother. It's most likely why you're so attached to it."

The words didn't want to register in Leia's head. In fact, the statement made _less_ sense than anything the man had said that far.

"Huh?" Leia blinked, baffled.

"It belonged to your mother. Your _real_ mother."

Truly, this late information struck a chord deep in Leia's subconscious.

 _It belonged to my. . .real mom? My birth mom?_

She did her best to appear unaffected, though.

"Oh," she said simply.

When she made eye contact with Ben again, his scrutinizing stare seemed to bore another hole through her very soul, seeing deep into her hidden thoughts. She hurriedly averted her eyes. There was something off about this man.

"So," Luke said, hopping off his chair and stalking over to Kenobi. "What are you? Some kind of mind-reader?"

"Not a mind-reader," Obi-Wan corrected. "A Jedi. A little out of practice, but a Jedi all the same."

"Jedi," Leia repeated, more to herself than to anyone else. "I've heard of those. Guardians of peace, protectors of the galaxy. Kept things balanced."

"You're very right," Ben said, mildly impressed at her knowledge.

"But. . ." she continued, "I thought they were. . .well, I thought they sort of disappeared after a while."

She knew what had really happened, of course. Being "blessed" with a rich historical knowledge of the galaxy she lived in, Princess Leia knew all about the Jedi. . .and Order 66.

Order 66 had been issued by Chancellor Palpatine, more commonly known now as the Emperor. He had purposely ordered the army of Republic Clone Troopers to exterminate any Jedi when he gave the command. That command had been Order 66.

The Jedi were becoming a threat to Palpatine's power, and, like most rulers, he had taken action to ensure his political (and quite possibly physical) safety. Within a day or two, every Jedi had been destroyed. Betrayed by their own troops.

Leia still got shivers thinking about it. The story wasn't just a campfire tale; it was real.

She had thought the Jedi were gone—a distant memory. Yet, this man claimed to be the very thing that no longer existed.

Luke was thinking similar thoughts, but with a slight twist. He'd heard of the Jedi, yes. But he hadn't _believed_ in them. Jedi were a myth; a legend. Something parents told their kids as, ironically, a campfire tale, or a bedtime story. Mere fiction. But, in retrospect, it would make sense now! Leia continued his thought as a question.

"Weren't Jedi said to have some sort of power? Mind control, moving objects. . .stuff like that?"

"Indeed," Obi-Wan said. "And you would know. You have that same power, don't you? Both of you."

Leia and Luke shared a glance of nervousness. What was this man going to tell them? Was their power dangerous? Is that why he was here? To warn them? Or was he here to only make sure they were aware of their abilities?

"You have many questions, I'm sure," Kenobi said.

Once again, Luke muttered, "Creepy." Leia elbowed him in the ribs.

Obi-Wan continued as if he hadn't heard Luke.

"All will be answered in time. But, as of now, I have other matters to attend to. It was truly pleasing to be in the presence of you both once again."

With that, Obi-Wan smiled and left the room. Luke and Leia were left with bewildered looks on their faces.

"What. . .just. . .happened?" Luke asked, frowning. Now that the old man was gone, a cryptic feeling lingered in the room. Unanswered questions hung in the air.

"I have no idea. But that guy was mysterious," Leia said. "I kinda like him."

Luke gave her a skeptical look.

 **~•~**

Owen and Beru stopped Kenobi before he left the house.

"You didn't tell them, did you?" Beru asked, concern evident in her voice.

Obi-Wan gave them a reassuring smile.  
"It isn't my _job_ to tell them. They'll find out when the time is right."

Owen and Beru each let out a relieved sigh. They had desperately hoped that he hadn't said anything, so they were happy the twins' biological bond was still a secret. Many precautions had been taken to ensure the secrecy.

"But don't get too comfortable," Kenobi continued. "Sooner or later, they'll find out. And when they do, it'll be quite the show."

"You think this is funny?" Owen demanded.

"On my part, yes. Because," Obi-Wan pointed at Owen's chest, "you can't keep a secret from a Skywalker."

Next, the old man gave a short smile, nodded his head, and left. Owen and Beru were left with a lot to think about.

 **~•~**

"So," Leia was saying. "You know that guy?"

Luke shook his head.

"I know _of_ him, yeah. He's old Ben Kenobi. . .a hermit—doesn't get out too much."

"How'd you hear of him?"

"Oh, he used to stop by every now and then when I was really young. After a bit, Uncle Owen put a stop to those visits. Said they were too risky, or something like that."

"Risky? Why? I mean, the old man is kind of odd. . .but there wasn't anything _dangerous_ about him."

"Yeah, that's what I thought, too. It's weird that he'd just show up here unannounced. It's even _weirder_ that my uncle let him in!"

"Maybe it was something important. Significant, possibly?"

"I doubt it. Ben hasn't come around here for a few years now. And he just sat here. He didn't _seem_ like he wanted to tell us something urgent."

A shadow stretched across one end of the room. The teens looked up to see it was Han, leaning against the doorway.

"Well. How was your meet and greet with the ol' hermit?" Han asked.

Leia shrugged while Luke answered, "Coulda been better."

"He sounded a little cryptic, don't you think?" the pilot said, plopping down on the edge of Luke's bed.

Leia responded right away.

"Yeah, for sure. We think there's something he's not telling us."

Almost immediately, Han's features seemed to tense. Luke didn't notice, but Leia did. She decided not to mention anything yet.

"Something he's not telling you? Why? What did he talk about?" Han leaned forward.

"I don't know. He asked me about my journal, he said some stuff about us having questions. . .oh yeah! He mentioned something about how he hasn't seen me and Luke together for a while."

Han tried his best not to seem nervous.

"No kidding? Huh. Almost sounds like a stalker," Han half-laughed.

Leia was still suspicious of Han. Was there something _he_ wasn't telling them?

 _Might as well be direct about it. It's Han, after all._

"Han, you seem a little _nervous_. What's up?" Leia said half-casually. It angered Han that she had caught on so quickly. Was he really that bad of an actor? And how was he supposed to worm his way out of this?

"Me? Nah, not nervous. Just. . .thinkin'. Thinkin' about the old man."

"Yeah, I know. What about him?"

Small beads of sweat started to collect on Han's forehead. He prayed to any diety willing to listen that Leia couldn't read his thoughts.

"Look, Your Highness," Han finally said. "You're a smart kid. You both are. If there's something you think you should know, I gotta let you do it on your own."

Luke and Leia exchanged a glance. Their expressions were unreadable, but their tones were crystal clear. They each stated (rather loudly) why they didn't approve of Han's way of avoiding answering a question.

Leia was the angrier one—Luke just didn't like being kept in the dark. Each twin thought they were being wronged in some way.

"I'm sorry, guys, really. But I can't tell ya anything. As much as I want to, I _can't_. You'll figure it out. I promise." He sounded genuinely sorry, but the Princess was still upset.

Leia rolled her eyes and glared at Han.

"Famous. Last. Words."

 **A/N: There you have it, folks. Han Solo won't be spoiling the Twin Secret. And it doesn't look like Obi-Wan will, either. Interesting, interesting.**

 **I'm actually surprised I haven't let Leia and Luke just FIGURE IT OUT. There are so many hints and clues. You'd think the kids would connect the dots. All in due time, hehehehehe.**

 **Alrighty! Hope you liked this chapter! The story is coming (very slowly) to a close. I'm thinking about doing a sequel. . .would you guys want a sequel? Hmm. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.**

 **Byeeeeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	25. Chapter 25: Luke's Plan

**A/N: Hola amigos, and welcome to Chapter 25! I'm in a huge hurry to get this chapter up, so let's just hop on in! That wasn't much of an introduction, but you'll love this chapter! At least, I hope you'll love it ;) LETS GO! *snaps fingers***

Leia watched patiently from the floor as Luke paced the length of his bedroom. Her calm eyes followed him as he walked back and forth.

"Something's going on, Leia. I _know_ it!" Luke said, still pacing.

Leia offered him a heartfelt nod.

"I feel like I'm the only one that doesn't know some secret," continued Luke.

Leia nodded.

"Like there's something I _should_ know, but I just can't figure it out!"

Leia nodded.

"It's on the tip of my tongue! It's like I _already_ know, I just can't. . .I can't. . ."

"Pinpoint it," Leia finally said, sighing. "Yeah, me too."

Luke nodded enthusiastically. "Exactly! What _is_ it? What don't we know?"

"I'm the wrong person to ask. But can you stop pacing like a caged Nexu? You're making _me_ anxious."

"Oh, sorry." Luke plopped down on the floor and rested his chin in his hands. "I just don't get it. It's. . .unnerving."

Leia felt the exact same way. It seemed like everyone was in on a secret that only she and Luke didn't know. Like there was something going on that nobody would tell them. If she thought about it any longer, she was going to go crazy!

Leia put her head in her hands.

"Ugh! _Please_ change the subject! This is making my head hurt."

She was relieved when Owen Lars entered the room.

"Luke," he said, addressing the boy, "your aunt and I are heading into town for some errands. You'll be staying here with the two pilots. Think you can handle yourself?"

"No problem," Luke answered, shooting Leia a quick grin. "Have fun."

Owen left, giving the twins the freedom to exchange happy glances. They were going to be (essentially) home alone!  
They wondered what kind of fun—

Han strolled casually through the doorway, his Wookiee friend not far behind. Leia and Luke's expressions went from excited to disappointed when they realized Han would be their roadblock.

"Han? What are you doing here?" Leia asked, looking up at him.

He smirked.

"Well, I've seen what you two can do when you're unsupervised. I'm here to prevent any. . .problems."

"I'll show you a problem. . ." Leia muttered under her breath, only to be nudged sharply by Luke.

"Anyway," Han continued, "there isn't much that can happen way out here, right?"

A knock sounded on the door of the house.

Chewbacca growled something that was probably along the lines of, "Spoke too soon."

 **~•~**

A tall figure, cloaked in darkness, kneeled before a throne. Light was scarce there, and the room maintained a consistent cold temperature.

The kneeling figure was none other than Darth Vader, Lord of the Sith. His head, which was covered by his life-supporting helmet, was bowed in respect. If it were any other person, their head would be bowed out of _fear_ , rather than respect. For the person (if that is even a proper term to describe him) in front of Vader was Emperor Palpatine himself.

Very few people were _not_ afraid of the Emperor. Even Vader, though he'd never outwardly admit it, was slightly on edge around the old man. Yes, the Emperor was old. Perhaps he wouldn't be quite so old-looking if he hadn't let the Dark Side consume every fiber of his being.

The Emperor was a short, shriveled old man, but he possessed more power than anyone in the galaxy. His face was wrinkled with age, his teeth were sickeningly yellow. A dark cloak and hood were draped over his body, concealing the rest of his decrepit form.

If someone was placed so blatantly before the Emperor, their heart rate would increase to a definitely unhealthy speed.

But not Vader. Palpatine was Darth Vader's master, and Vader was here because he had news to deliver. Interesting news.

"My Master," he said, his voice deepened by the mask he wore.

"Rise, Lord Vader," said the Emperor, who looked on with mild interest.

"I've felt a great disturbance in the Force."

"Most interesting. Do elaborate," the Emperor hissed.

"I felt it nearly one standard week ago, my Master. A tremor. . .a disruption."

"And who could it be?"

"I do not know."

The Emperor paused, then said, "You _do_. Tell me."

Vader also hesitated before speaking. But there was no point in trying to hide it from his master. If Vader lied, the consequences would be greater than telling the truth.

"Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan, Master."

 **~•~**

Leia and Luke looked at each other while Han debated whether he should open the door or not. The three of them stood facing the house's entrance (Chewie had stayed in the bedroom) while the visitor repeated their persistent knocking.

"I don't know, Kid," Han said to Luke. "Should I open it?"

Luke looked to Leia, who shrugged.

"I guess," the boy said, not very helpfully. Han's hand moved to the doorknob. . .he turned it. . .

" _Wait!_ " Leia exclaimed in a whisper. Her hand shot out to stop Han from moving any further and she wound up with her back pressed against the door, as if she were shielding them from some unseen threat.

Han's eyes darted from the door to Leia.

" _What_?" he said through clenched teeth.

"Do _not_ open that door," Leia answered quietly. Her voice was only just above a whisper.

"Why not?" Luke said, not bothering to lower his voice. Both Han and Leia shushed him.

"Be _cause_." Leia didn't budge from her stance in front of the door. Han, by now thoroughly confused, tried prying her off, but it was as if her fingers were bolted to the doorframe.

"Because _why?_ " Han insisted. He was beginning to get impatient with the girl. What was so bad that he couldn't. . .

Leia's brown eyes stared deep into Han's hazel ones.

"Stormtroopers," she whispered. Now that she'd said the words out loud, they had an opportunity to take full effect on her. The Princess's face paled significantly, and her breathing became uneven. Han and Luke were doing no better.

"What do we do?" Luke asked nervously.

"I don't know," Han answered, "but whatever we do, we better do it quick."

Both boys turned to Leia, who immediately panicked.

"Why are you looking at _me?_ I'm more stressed than you guys are!"

Luke frantically searched his brain for a plan—ANY plan. His hasty brainstorming resulted in one idea. . .but Han wouldn't like it.

"Han," Luke started. "I'm gonna take Leia out the back way. I need you to stay here and distract the stormtroopers."

Han frowned.

"And then I meet up with you guys?" he asked. Luke looked uncomfortable, and Leia still didn't know what was going on.

"No. . ." Luke admitted. "We need you to stay here as a distraction. I'll—"

Han interrupted, "No way, kid! The Princess is my responsibility!"

Leia opened her mouth to contradict, but Han kept talking.

"If you two run off and she gets hurt, who do you think is gonna get blamed in the end? No. No, it's _way_ too dangerous."

Luke and Han continued their argument while Leia watched in silence. She knew something had to be done, because she wasn't in the mood to be captured by stormtroopers. She had to think of something, and fast.

What was Han's weakness—the one thing sure to change his mind.

Leia got an idea. . .but she didn't necessarily approve of it. It would be a test of her dignity, that's for sure. Was it worth it?

The consistent knocking was now accompanied by frequent demands to open the door.

It was worth it.

"Han!" Leia said, still trying to keep her voice down. The two boys stopped talking and turned to the Princess. "I _need_ you to stay here."

Han got a strange look on his face. It was kind of a frown, but there was an expression of disbelief mixed in there somewhere.

Leia continued.

" _Please_ , Han? For me?" She batted her eyelashes and plastered on a desperate expression. Han looked torn.

The young pilot didn't know what to think. In any other situation, Leia would _never_ have looked at him like that—she was too stubborn. And deep down, Han knew it was all an act. He _knew_ that Leia was playing with his weak spot.

But. . .then, why did it feel so. . . _good_?

Han turned his eyes heavenward before looking back to Leia. Suddenly, the look on her face didn't seem as fake. That was good enough for Han.

"Fine," he said, even though it took every ounce of willpower he had. "But if she gets hurt, I'm holding _you_ responsible." Han jabbed a finger at Luke's chest. Luke gulped and nodded.

"Got it?" Han asked.

"Got it," Luke and Leia chorused.

Before the twins could bolt off, Han pulled Leia into an unexpected hug. At first, the Princess was stiff as a board. Then, she relaxed, and even hugged him back, because they might not see each other for a while, and they were friends, and—

When Leia realized what she was doing, she pulled away with a red face. Leia had very nearly got carried away again.

She cleared her throat and brushed some sand off of her tunic.

"Uh. . .we should. . .we should get going," Leia said to Luke. He agreed wholeheartedly.

Luke grabbed Leia's hand and pulled her down the hallway. Han didn't get a chance to see if Leia had looked back at him. Why? Because the door burst open only moments after the twins jogged away.

Han jumped out of the door's way. There were five stormtroopers standing outside. Three of them were holding blasters, and the other two tromped unceremoniously into the house. Han didn't get to make an attempt to stop them.

"Sir," said the Troop Leader. "We know Princess Organa is here. It's no use trying to hide her."

Han smirked.

"Actually boys," he said, "the Princess isn't here. And didn't I already tell you—"

"Wait! You're the man who made that speeder getaway! The Princess was with you!"

Han started to panic. All things considered, he could still worm his way out of this. There had been worse situations.

He hoped Luke and Leia were okay.

 **~•~**

"This is _not_ o _kay_ ," Leia told Luke as they approached the exit.

"Leia, it's the only way!"

"But we already climbed up this thing once! There's gotta be another way out!"

The twins were standing in front of the white, metal grate that had allowed them to escape the house many days ago. Last time, though, _Luke_ was the hesitatant one. Now, it seemed the roles had been reversed. Leia had her feet planted firmly on the ground, and she intended for them to stay there.  
Luke shook his head.

"There _isn't_ any other way! Just climb! I'm right behind you!"

Leia grimaced.

 _I really don't want to do this. What if we get caught?_

Footsteps sounded from the hall behind them. It was the perfect motivation for Leia, who started up the grate with ease. Luke nodded, satisfied, and followed.

 **~•~**

Four stormtroopers had gone off to search the house. There was only one that stood guard in front of Han. And the poor troop leader was getting a whole lot of talk.

"So," Han was saying. "Why are you guys so intent on finding this Princess character?"

The trooper sighed.

"That would be classified, Sir."

"I see. And _who_ do your orders come from?"

"Lord Vader, Sir."

"Huh. What does _he_ want with the Princess?"

"Also classified."

"Is there anything that _isn't_ classified?"

"Not unless we can kill you after we tell you."

Han blinked and made no remark.

Another armor-clad stormtrooper marched into the room.

"Sir," he reported to his leader. "We've searched the building. No sign of her."

"Have you done a perimeter check?" the leader asked.

"No, Sir, not yet. Permission to check the outside?"

"Permission granted."

"No, wait!" Han objected, throwing out his hands.

Both stormtroopers turned to him in mild curiosity and also blatant irritation.  
Han realized all eyes were on him.

What tale should he spin?

 **~•~**

Leia and Luke had reached the top, once again. As they carefully crawled off of the grate, Luke spotted something in the distance.

"Hey, Leia!" he whispered.

"What is it now?" she asked, legs dangling over the edge of the hole they'd climbed out of.

"I see a ship over there!" Luke pointed. This information grasped Leia's attention. She whipped her head around to see what Luke was pointing at.

Several meters away, a gray shuttle was landed on a sandy dune. Leia had seen those before, and knew enough to use her common sense.

"Luke, don't even think about it. That's an _Imperial_ grade shuttle! I bet the stormtroopers landed here in that!"

"Wow," the boy breathed. "What I wouldn't give to fly one of those."

"Save the wishful thinking for another time. What are we gonna do? We can't go back inside, and we don't have a speeder to drive."

Luke saw Leia's very obvious, and very grim, point. Even though they were in the middle of nowhere (with endless land on every side of them), they were cornered.

Before Leia could escalate into full blown panic-mode, Luke pointed towards the horizon.

"We go," he said. Leia blinked at him.

"Huh?" she said, frowning.

"We go _that_ way."

"What? Why that way? What's that way?"

"That way is the _Millennium Falcon._ "

Suddenly, it all sank in.

 _Luke wants us to head back to Han's ship, because we can use THAT to escape! Brilliant! Pretty risky, but brilliant!_

"Ohhhh, I see!" Leia said, nodding. "But. . .we'd have to walk an awful long way."

Luke seemed dismissive.

"Nah, we've survived worse. It's not exactly Mission: Impossible."

Leia narrowed her eyes.

"So. You have plan, then?"

Luke smiled.

"Obviously."

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _We're on the road again! And by road, I mean endless desert plains stretching on for miles ahead of us. We have a destination. . .sort of._

 _Luke says he has a plan, so I'm trusting him. He hasn't told me what it is yet, but I'm trying to be patient._

 _We've been walking for a while now. I really hope Han is doing okay. Well, we kinda left him with Imperial Units. . .but it's fine. Han can handle himself if need be. Plus, Chewie's with him. I'm hoping for the best._

 _We're on our way to the_ Millennium Falcon _. If Han hasn't moved it, that is. I don't think he would've had time to land the ship somewhere else, so. . ._

 _All I'm really holding on to is blind hope. A new concept, but it's working._

 _It's getting sort of dark, which means we'll probably just stay here for the night. "Here" is behind another rock. It's probably the same one we were on a while ago, which means the Falcon shouldn't be far._

 _Vader's after me. And, honestly? I'm scared. There's no escape from Vader! If he wants you, you might as well just turn yourself in! Vader gets what he wants—always. And that's not comforting._

 _-Leia_

 **A/N: WOOHOO. There you have it! How'd you like it? What did ya think? Drop a review to lemme know, hehe.**

 **And wow. Guys. This story is only gonna have like 30 or 31 chapters! We're almost done! Will Luke and Leia find out they're twins before the story is done? Will Vader find Leia? Who knows? Me.** ** _I_** **know. Cuz I wrote it. So yep.**

 **The closing chapters of this book will be a bit longer, so I hope that's okay. Thanks for reading/reviewing! It means a lot! 3**

 **-Lia**


	26. Chapter 26: Twinning is Winning

**A/N: Heyo, wonderful people of the Internet! Hope your day is going SPLENDIDLY!**  
 **Welcome to. . . *deep breath* CHAPTER 26!**

 **If you've ever skipped an authors note, okay. BUT DONT SKIP THIS ONE!**

 **This is now your heads-up. This chapter is BY FAR my favorite one that I've written. It's. . .well, you'll have to read to find out what exactly is so wonderful about CHAPTER 26! No spoilers. None.**

 **So. Just be prepared for the "greatest revelation of your life". It's the moment you've all been (probably) waiting for. Have fun!**

"So," Leia said, as she and Luke walked through the desert. "Lemme get this straight. _You_ want to pilot the _Millennium Falcon_?"

Luke smiled along with a nod.

Leia continued, "Okay, riiiiight. Remind me again what your plan is?"

"It's simple. We find the ship, we hop in, I'll fly it towards my house, we pick up Han, we fly away! See? Simple!"

Luke turned to see Leia's reaction. She had gone slack-jawed and her eyebrows were furrowed in a, "Are you CRAZY?" look. Luke winced.

"Luke!" she exclaimed. "Of _course_ it's not _simple._ You don't even _know_ how to fly that ship! And it'll be harder than _that_ to just pick up Han! The place is probably swarming with stormtroopers!"

"Yeah, but they came _yes_ terday! They wouldn't still be there."

"Wanna bet?"

". . .not really. . ."

"That's what I thought. Luke, I think this has actually turned into Mission: Impossible."

"No, it's not. It'll be fine."

"Promise?"

"Uh. . ."

"Don't answer that. I already know." Leia sounded disappointed.

Luke realized that his uncertainty really wasn't helping his side of the argument. Fortunately, he didn't have to keep talking. Not too far ahead of them, the familiar shape of the _Millennium Falcon_ could be seen.

Luke and Leia gazed at it in awe. They simultaneously challenged, "Race ya."

Leia took off running immediately, and Luke followed when he figured out that she was serious.

Leia enjoyed the temporary pleasure of running. It had always been something she'd enjoyed, though she rarely had the chance to do it on Alderaan. Sometimes she would run through the palace halls just because she could. Other times, she'd run up to the little gazebo on the hill behind her home.

She never realized how much she missed that sensation.

The breeze she created whipped through her hair and filled her lungs. As she ran, her speed quickened to the point that Luke fell very far behind.

Checking to make sure nobody was watching, Leia spread her arms out at her sides, still running. The sensation was twice as better that way. To add to the fun, Leia did a little twirl and laughed.

Suddenly, running towards Han's ship, Leia acquired that welcome sense of freedom. Perhaps it was the openness of the desert, or perhaps it was the mere action of running. Whatever the reason, Leia was filled with a feeling of joy. She never wanted that feeling to end.

Unfortunately, the _Millennium Falcon_ was looming closer every second, and it would be impractical to run right past it. Therefore, ten seconds later, Leia skidded to a half when she came within a few feet of the ship.

It was then that she realized she was barely even panting. Usually, a run like that would've drained all the energy she had. This time, though, she felt completely calm. Her breathing wasn't heavy, her heart wasn't beating faster, and she didn't feel the least bit tired.

 _That's weird. . ._

Leia decided not to dwell on it. It wasn't every day that she felt like this, so she settled on just enjoying it while it lasted. She'd figure it out later.

A few seconds later, Luke showed up, panting like an overworked bantha. He stopped next to Leia and stood with his hands on his knees.

"How. . .did you. . .do that?" Luke asked between breaths.

"Do what?"

"Run. . .so fast!"

"Oh. I. . .I don't know," Leia answered.

She hadn't lied—she really _didn't know._

Luke didn't seem to mind what the answer was anyway. His focus was catching his breath.

Once Luke had calmed down, Leia pointed to the ship's ramp.

"It's closed. How do we open it? Is there a lever? A button?"

Luke moved closer to the ramp to thoroughly inspect it. He cocked his head, deep in thought.

"Hmm. It's _not_ shut," he observed. Leia joined him by the ramp.

"What do you mean? Yes it is. See?"

However, when Leia tried to prove her point, she found out that Luke was right. The ramp wasn't shut all the way; there was a small rock wedged between the ship and the ramp to keep it open.

Whether it was placed there on purpose or not was fairly obvious.

"Gee, Han," Leia said to the desert around her. "Did you know we were gonna be coming back here?"

Luke laughed. It was pretty impressive that Han had thought to keep the ramp open. Was that something he did all the time, or just for them?

"But there's one more problem," Leia pointed out.

"Which is what?"

"How do we lower the ramp? We'd have to pull it down or something."

"What did we do last time?"

"Last time, the ramp was lowered half way. We just tugged on it until it came down."

"So, that's what we do this time."

Leia looked skeptical, but really, there weren't many options.

The two teens each grabbed a side of the ramp, Luke on the right and Leia on the left.

"On three, we pull," Luke instructed. "One. . .two. . .three!"

Luke and Leia put all their strength into pulling on the ramp. It didn't budge.

Leia resorted to outright _dangling_ from the ramp, but that didn't work either.  
After several more minutes of tugging, pulling, and grunts of effort, the ramp actually started to inch downward. This motivated them to keep going. The ramp creaked and moaned as it lowered.

Leia, still pulling with all her might, panted, "This can't be good for the ramp. What if we break it?"

Luke's strained answer was, "We won't break it. By the looks of it, this ship has survived worse."

In the end, their combined efforts got the ramp lowered enough to crawl through the opening. Once they were inside, the ramp started shutting automatically behind them.

"Um. . ." Leia started, wondering if they should do something about that. The friends looked at each other and shrugged.

"At least nobody can get in now," Luke offered.

 **~•~**

Han stood rigid by the door of Owen's house. Owen and Beru had long since come home, and they weren't happy with the situation. And that was being _mild_.

Owen had come home to a house full of Imperial stormtroopers. He had proceeded to have a _long_ talk with the troop leader while Han tried to sink inconspicuously into the background.

When the troop leader had mentioned who they were looking for, Owen's eyes went wide. Beru tried her best to look passive.

Owen had assured the stormtroopers that the Princess of Alderaan was nowhere near there, and also that Han was their "over-imaginative son".

Surprisingly enough, the trooper bought it. The unit of soldiers left the house just before the Suns set.

Owen had turned straight to Han and demanded answers. And, of course, the truth had come out. All of it. Perhaps even _more_ than all of it, if that was possible.

Owen now knew about Vader's pursuit of Leia, Leia's heritage, Han's knowledge of the twins, and all that had happened in Mos Eisley.

To say the least. . .Luke's aunt and uncle hadn't been pleased to hear any of it.

Owen had asked, "So, where are the kids now?"

Han then had to explain _that_ part of the story. Luke's guardians had practically exploded with rage.

So, here Han was, about to go look for the twins. His "one job" was to find the twins and bring them back. Well, bring _one_ of them back.

He was to take Leia. . .back to Alderaan.

"She'll be safer there than she is here," Owen said.

Han nodded, though he knew Leia would throw a fit. It couldn't be helped. With everything going on, Leia needed to go back home. Whether she liked it or not.

With that, Han left the house with Chewie following. The young pilot had a pretty decent idea of where the kids would be.

 **~•~**

Luke and Leia were sitting around the game table in the _Millennium Falcon._ After boarding the ship, they had attemped getting some sleep, but it was too early in the day. That, and it was all too much excitement. Sleep was no longer an option.

Then, they had tried to play holochess, but that didn't last long. The game board was now turned off, and the kids were deep in discussion.

"So, how big was your palace?" Luke asked. Leia played with a piece of her hair, absentmindedly.

"I don't know. Pretty big, I guess."

"And you have a balcony, right?"

"Attached to my room, yeah."

"And that's what you used to run away?"

"Yeah. . ." Leia trailed off.

Luke's question had stimulated a surplus of memories. Things she'd rather not think about. But they came anyway.

 _Leia closed her journal and looked around. She hoped her parents weren't awake. With a final glance around her room, she opened the door to her balcony. . ._

 _Leia laid eyes on the junky ship. It didn't look like much, but it's ramp was lowered. She boarded it. . ._

 _Leia turned and crashed into a mass of brown fur—Chewbacca. . ._

 _". . .you're just a stuck up. . .half witted. . .scruff looking. . .NERF HERDER!". . ._

 _Leia opened the doors to the cantina. . ._

 _Luke held Leia's shimmering tiara, and it reflected the golden rays of sunset. . ._

 _The alien threw his mug at Leia, causing scalding liquid to drench the girl. . ._

 _The toolbox crashed right into Leia's forehead, sending her sprawling to the floor. . ._

"Leia? Leia? Tatooine to Leia! Hello?" Luke said, waving a hand in front of the Princess's face.

"Hmm? What?" she said, shaking herself out of her reverie. "Sorry. I was just. . .you know. Thinking."

Luke nodded, though he didn't totally understand. But, if there was anything he had learned about girls, it was that you shouldn't question them.

"You miss Alderaan, don't you?" Luke said knowingly. Leia looked at him.

"Well. . .kind of. Not really. I mean, _yeah,_ but. . .ugh! I don't know!"

"I know you do. Deep down, you're homesick."

Leia violently shook her head of messy curls.

"What? No. I was for a while, but not anymore."

"Leia, I'm not stupid. You miss your family."

The young Princess turned away.

"At least you _have_ parents," Luke continued. "I don't. Mine are either dead or just didn't want me. You've got it easy."

"Not really. I'm adopted, remember? I might have parents, and I love them, but they're not my real ones. No matter how much I pretend they are."

The two of them had that in common. A shared longing for things they simply could never have. Both of them wanted freedom—Luke was stuck on Tatooine, Leia was stuck on Alderaan.

Leia lived with her adopted parents, Luke lived with his aunt and uncle.

Two completely different lives, and planets that were polar opposites. Yet, somehow, two people who were undeniably similar.

Luke stopped to think for a moment.

Leia caught his look.

"What?" she asked, curious.

"Oh, I just think it's funny." Expect Luke wasn't laughing.

"What's funny?"

"Just. . .the fact that neither of us know our real parents."

"Huh. Yeah. You're right. Weird."

"And. . .our birthdays are awfully close. When's yours again?"

"Exactly twenty-seven days from now."

Luke froze. He took a good, long, hard look at Leia. It was starting to make her uncomfortable. Was it something she said?

"What? What is it?" she asked, shifting in her seat. Luke scooted to sit next to her rather than across from her.

"Nothing. . .but _my_ birthday is twenty-seven days from now."

Now it was Leia's turn to stare. All she could manage was a choked, " _What?_ "

"So. . .we share a birthday, we both don't know who our birth parents are, you live with your adopted family, and I live with my aunt and uncle. That _can't_ be a coincidence." Luke laughed, but it was one of his strained, nervous laughs.

Leia sat in stunned silence.

Completely random thoughts started to fill her mind. The most vivid one, though, was a memory of when she was eleven years old.

 _{two years ago}_

 ** _Diary of Leia Organa_**

 _Well. Hi there. I never, EVER thought I'd keep a journal. Not ever. Not in a billion years. But here I am. I guess I should introduce myself. . ._

 _I'm Princess Leia Organa, of House Organa, Heir to the Throne of Alderaan. But you can just call me Leia. Wait—what am I saying? You're a JOURNAL. You can't call me anything. Whatever._

 _Anyway, at some point, I was told that you're supposed to write "personal stuff" in journals. I'm only writing in this book because I have a. . .dare I say. . ."personal" matter. I can't tell my parents, so I'm telling a book, of all things. Well, here goes nothing._

 _Yesterday, I had to do a family tree project for my studies. I had to ask Father about my parents (my real parents). 'Cause I'm adopted._

 _He said just to write down my adoptive family, but I didn't want to. I insisted on writing my actual birth parents. He said, "Let's compromise." So I knew things were about to get tricky. Reeeeeeal tricky. Because he's a diplomat, you see._

 _He told me the name of my real dad! His name is Anakin._

 _But that's it. That's all I know. He wouldn't tell me the last name, my real mom's name, or what they looked like. Nothing. Just Anakin. So I guess that's my family tree._

 _Anakin._

 _I don't know. Maybe Father thinks I'll try to contact my birth parents or something. I wouldn't do that, though. It's not as if I could. I don't even know if they're_ alive.

 _It's all so weird. I always get this feeling when I think about my real parents. My real family. I get this feeling that's really hard to explain. It's like. . .like there's this hole in my chest._

 _Kind of like there's a missing piece of me. I know—it sounds crazy. But it's true. And I don't care what you think, because you're just a book. So there._

 _I should go. I have a big day tomorrow. But don't expect me to make a habit of this "diary" nonsense. It won't happen again. Not anytime soon, anyway._

 _-Leia_

 _{present}_

That had been her first diary entry. And she _had_ made a habit of it, actually. She had journaled the day after her first entry, and the day after that.

For the longest time, Leia had forgotten the name of her birth father. It had disappeared under the piles of other things that occupied her mind these days. Hidden amongst the maze that ran through Leia's subconscious.

She had just claimed that she didn't know—that was always the easiest answer, because she didn't have time to think through the whole thing. But she _did_ know. And she knew Luke did to, though he'd denied it to Han.

"Hey, Luke?" she asked, her posture rigid with anticipation. Something was buzzing in the back of her head, a feeling that Leia was growing accustomed to. She hoped she was making the right choice.

Because there was an idea that had formed on the first day that she'd met Luke. A wild, outrageous, improbable idea. A theory that didn't make much sense and ignored all the reasoning and logic she'd ever been taught.

But the feeling was undeniable. Once Leia met Luke, that empty hole in her chest was gone. In fact, there was no evidence that it had ever been there in the first place. And how else had it disappeared? The truth was unmistakable: Luke was the missing piece.

"Hmm?" Luke replied, looking equally as anxious. Maybe he felt the same way she did.

"On three. . .I want us both to say the name of our _real_ dads."

"Wait. . .how do you know. . . ?"

"You _do_ know his name. I just wanna. . .I just wanna check something. So. On three?"

"On three, I guess."

The anticipation was building steadily. Leia could feel a new sort of electricity surrounding them, like a crackling energy that was pulling them closer together.

Luke and Leia were almost scared of what their answers would be. If their answers were different, things would be the same, and life could carry on as normal. However, Leia knew the answers might be the same.

And in that case. . .well, she didn't quite know what would happen. She'd almost rather not find out.

Almost.

"One. . .two. . ." Luke began, "two and a half. . ."

"Just do it!"

"Three!"

At the same time, Luke and Leia inhaled and yelled, "Anakin!"

Then they stopped dead in their tracks.

It was as if Leia's entire body shut down, unable to function or process anything. A million words and phrases rushed through her mind, but she failed to grasp onto any of them.

It could be a coincidence, right? There were probably many people in the galaxy named Anakin.

But she knew that wasn't right. Leia _knew_ that this man, Anakin, was their father. And it was at that moment that everything registered and her thoughts exploded.

 _Oh my gosh. Oh my GOSH. We have the same dad. We have the same DAD! OH MY GOSH!_

"Leia. . ." Luke choked out words first. He was having the same thoughts as Leia, and she knew. There wasn't any way to explain it—everything just felt _right._

"We're. . .we're siblings."

Leia's eyes started filling with tears—the happiest tears ever.

"Luke, we're not just siblings. We're _twins!_ "

 **A/N: WHOOOOOAAA. Did you guys see that? I think you probably did, if you made it this far. BUT WHOOOOOOOAAA. It's official, guys. Luke and Leia know they're twins! And boy, I did it in the weirdest possible way, didn't I? Oopsies.**

 **Lemme know if you were expecting them to figure it out on their own, hahaha.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the chapter, or at least found it entertaining ;)**  
 **I've been waiting to upload this one for the LONGEST TIME.**  
 **Leave a review if you're feelin' the right vibe (lol, I'm weird), and have a great day!**  
 **Byeeeeeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	27. Chapter 27: We Know

**A/N: Hi again, Readers! Hope you're having a great day!**

 **So. Luke and Leia know they're related now, and it seems you guys actually liked the way I did it, so thank youuu! Now you'll get to see their overall reactions, and Han (and Chewie) also reappear in this chapter. No more spoilers, so have at it!**

Luke and Leia sat in silence. But it wasn't an uncomfortable, awkward silence. Instead, it was a peaceful kind of quietness that suggested people _wanted_ it to be that way. They needed the silence to figure things out on their own, before they exchanged words with each other.

After a while, Leia was finally able to feel emotions again. But when they hit her, they hit her _hard._ Should she laugh? Cry? Smile? Pass out? Luke was just as overwhelmed.

Soon, Leia had tears running down her face, and Luke didn't know whether to jump with joy or mimic Leia's tears of happiness. For a moment, they just sat there and smiled at each other, wanting to speak but not having the courage to do so.

Eventually, Luke settled on tackling Leia in a hug. She laughed through her tears to hug him back, because that was really all she was capable of at the moment.

The two twins stayed like that for a while, basking in their newfound relationship. And, for the first time in her life, Leia felt complete.

 **~•~**

Han and Chewbacca were taking a break from their hike. They seemed to be in a heated discussion, but it was actually just Han talking to himself.

"How could I have been so _stupid?_ " Han asked no one in particular. "I let them run off to who knows where! I'm supposed to _look after_ those kids! And, heck, what am I gonna tell the Viceroy of Alderaan? I can't say his daughter slash heir to the throne is running unsupervised through Tatooine with her long lost twin brother!"

Chewbacca produced a noise resembling a laugh.

"And that's a whole 'nother story! Who knows what'll happen when they figure it out! They obviously don't know they're twins, and I'm scared to think about what'll happen if they find out. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they _already_ know. Yeah, and I wonder how they'd handle it."

Chewie growled.

"No, they'd handle it better than that. They're smart kids. The most they'll do is. . .I don't know, high-five or something."

 **~•~**

Luke and Leia weren't being as mature as Han thought they would be.

They were currently jumping up and down in circles, still clinging tightly to one another.

"We're twins, we're twins, we're twins! I have a twin, I'm not an only child!" Leia was yelling.

Luke was saying, "I knew it, I knew it, I knew it! I finally have a sibling! I have a sister!"

To them, all previous happiness had been _nothing_ compared to this. Neither one of them had ever experienced joy this _pure_ and exciting.

The two siblings finally ceased their fit of celebration and collapsed happily onto the metal floor.

"So," Leia breathed, after forcing herself to calm down. "What are we supposed do now?"

Luke shrugged, the smile not leaving his face.

"I have no idea," he said. "I'm sure there's a certain reaction for times like this."

"Really? How many other people have reunited with their twin after almost fourteen years?"

"I don't know, but I'd like some advice from them!"

"So. . .does this mean my _real_ name is actually Leia. . .Skywalker?"

Luke paused, thought about that idea.

"Huh. Yeah, I guess it is!"

Luke and Leia laughed and chatted for almost another hour. As newly reunited twins, they had a lot to catch up on!

Leia filled him in on her previous longings for a sibling and the empty feeling she'd always had. Luke took that information amazingly well; in fact, he had had similar feelings and thoughts throughout the course of his life.

After talking for what seemed like forever, the two realized that they had more in common than they had previously thought. Luke and Leia shared similar interests, liked some of the same foods, and shared a certain "rebellious" attitude, to put it simply. Some funny stories were exchanged, and they laughed together.

Soon, though, Leia began to think realistically. This discovery was amazing, and Leia was happier (and more confused) than ever before. But really, what _were_ they supposed to do now?

She decided to voice her concerned opinions.

"Luke," Leia began. "What do we do? Do we tell our. . .our families?"

Luke didn't seem to like that idea.

"I. . .don't know. If they didn't feel the need to tell us about this, it was probably for a reason."

"You're right. They'll freak out! They'd just separate us again!"

"Okay, calm down. We have to think rationally and—"

"We run away!"

Luke paused, stunned. _What_ did Leia just say? Run away? Again? Didn't she have any other ideas? And yet, as crazy as it sounded, Luke was slightly curious where she was going with the idea.

"Leia, if you haven't noticed, _bad_ things happen when we run away! Your running away is what got us into this mess."

"I know, I know. But, hey! If I'd never come here, we would've never met!" She smiled.

Luke couldn't argue with that. Leia continued.

"This plan is absolutely _guaranteed_ to work."

"That sounds familiar."

"Oh, shush. The _point_ is, running away will ensure the likelihood that we get to stay together, right?"

"I. . .I don't think I follow your logic."

Leia groaned, "Ugh! You're such a pessimist."

Luke sighed.

"No, I'm not a pessimist. I'm a _realist._ "

Leia crossed her arms over her chest.

Luke let out yet another sigh.

"Look, Leia," he started, gently. "As much as I want to stay together now, we can't risk something crazy!"

"Well, why not? I thought you _liked_ being spontaneous."

"Yeah, when it's _reasonable_! Leia, you have a whole planet to rule one day! You can't stay—"

"So? I never signed up for that job! Look on the bright side: if we run away again, we won't have to worry about Vader! Now that we know we're twins, it's only a matter of time before _Vader_ knows."

Luke tried to argue, but he found no good reason to try. Leia put up a good fight. She'd be great in politics.

"Okay. . .so, say we _did_ run away. Where would we go?" Luke asked. Leia appeared to mull over that for a minute. Finally, she gave a short gasp of realization.

"To the old hermit's house!"

Luke did a double take before yelling, " _What_?!"

The Princess thought it was a wonderful idea.

"Yeah! To. . .to. . .what's his name?" she asked.

"Ben. Ben Kenobi," Luke sighed, dragging an exhausted hand down his face.

"To _his_ house! I bet he'd know what to do! He seems like a pretty knowledgeable person, right?"

Luke didn't know whether to agree or disagree. Or perhaps agree _to_ disagree? This supposed "plan" didn't sound very sturdy.

Leia took his silence as an opportunity to further promote her idea.

"It's simple! We just have to head back to your house, maybe find that speeder, and drive to _his_ house."

"Leia, his house is all the way out by the Junland Wastes! That's _miles_ away. And we'd never be able to get the speeder back! Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru will be right there, too. We can't let them find out."

"Luke. . .they already know. They know who I am, they know we're twins. . .they know it all. They should've also known that we'd figure it out. It'll be fine."

That also explained why Owen and Beru had acted so strangely towards her.

"Well. . ."

Leia waited expectantly while Luke tried to avoid eye contact. Thirty seconds went by. . .a minute. . .a minute and a half. . .

"Fine," Luke finished, glaring half-heartedly. Leia made a victorious gesture and launched herself into another hug.

"Yes! Thank you thank you thank you thank you!" she yelled.

Luke laughed. Leia was kind of crazy, but he decided that he liked it. Of all people, he was glad he had Leia for a twin sister.

 **~•~**

Han and Chewbacca weren't exactly having the time of their lives. The Suns' scorching rays beat down relentlessly, sand worked its way into Han's boots, and the desert seemed to go on. . .and on. . .and on.

How in the galaxy did Luke and Leia make the trip so fast?

Luke and Leia. Though he'd never admit it, Han already missed the two crazy kids. Especially Leia. . .another thing he'd never admit. There simply was no way to explain what he felt towards that girl. She possessed undying courage, confidence, and plenty of stubbornness. For some reason, Han was inexplicably attracted to her.

In what way, he didn't know. There was still a lot he had to figure out. But that said, he _really_ missed the kids.

He could almost hear their voices. Their smiling, happy voices. Getting louder. . .and closer. . . _what?_

Han shook his head to make sure he was still in reality. What was he thinking? He was in the middle of the desert! Luke and Leia weren't there.  
They were—running towards Han and his copilot!

 **~•~**

Luke and Leia were indeed running towards Han, though they didn't notice it. They were too engaged in their not-so-competitive race through the sand.

They had learned that they could release their pent-up energy by sprinting—and not just any sprinting. The twins were actually using their Force capabilities to increase their speed. Of course, they didn't know that either.

Leia seemed to fly right by Han, with Luke close at her heels. Han had to turn around and yell their names.

"Luke! Leia! Hang on!" he hollered.

Upon hearing his voice, Leia stopped in her tracks; she stopped a little too fast for Luke's liking. He crashed directly into her back.

"Oomph!" he exclaimed, stumbling backwards. Leia shushed him.

"Wait, wait," she said, holding up a finger. "Did you hear that?"

Luke shook his head.

"Are you sure, Luke? It almost sounded like. . ."

"Luke! _Leia!_ " the voice called again.

This time, both twins heard it.

"Han!" they chorused.

Their first instinct was to make a run for it (Han could possibly ruin their plan), but that seemed generally rude and also a little unjustified. Han could probably help them, even if he didn't agree with what they had planned.

So, the twins did a 180 degree turn and jogged cheerfully back to Han, who was accompanied by Chewbacca. The Wookiee encompassed Luke and Leia in a crushing hug, which left them gasping for air.

Han stood off to the side, not sure if he should be happy or upset. Those kids could've done something really stupid while he was gone.

When Chewie released the twins, each kid started talking at once.

"Hey, hey, one at a time!" Han said, waving his hands. Luke turned to Leia.

"Why me?" she said, appalled.

"Because, between us, he'll be less mad at you," Luke replied solemnly. Leia sighed before taking a step forward to look Han in the eyes.

"Han. . .we know."

The pilot frowned.

"That could mean a lotta different things, Princess. You know _what?_ "

"Um. . .remember how we said something felt wrong? And you said we'd have to figure it out by ourselves?"

"Yeah, why?" Han asked. Though, he really had a sense of what she was about to say. He just didn't want to acknowledge it. Probably because he couldn't _believe_ it.

"Well. . .me and Luke? We're. . .we're. . . _twins_."

Han turned his eyes towards the sky. They had figured it out. On their own.

He didn't know what to think. It didn't make sense. Then again, _nothing_ had made much sense since he'd met Leia. It was almost a natural occurrence to be involuntarily confused.

When Han looked back at Leia, she was standing with her hands near her chest, grimacing; it looked like she was _bracing_ herself for his reaction.

However, when Han opened his mouth, nothing came out. Instead of giving her his prepared response, he appeared to be giving her an intensely disapproving stare. Leia retaliated with pleads.

"I'm really, really sorry! We didn't _mean_ to find out! It just happened! It was a total accident! Well, I mean, not really, because we totally _tried_ to figure it out. . .but you get my point! I'm so so so so sorry, please don't make me go back home!"

After letting all of it out in a rush, Leia exhaled and locked her pleading eyes on Han's.

Han drew in a long breath after Leia's impromptu apology.

"I'm not mad, Leia," he said. Leia instantly became suspicious.

"You're not? So. . .what _are_ you? You don't seem _happy._ "

"True, I'm not happy about some of it. But, overall, I'm happy _for_ you guys."

Leia and Luke glanced at each other.

"But," Han continued, "I feel like you're leaving out a lot of the details."

"Yeah, that's because we are," Leia admitted.

"But this isn't the ideal place to talk about it," Luke threw in.

Han said, "You're absolutely right, kid. So. How about we head back to the _Falcon_ and talk this through? Sound good?"

Luke and Leia wore the expression of two children who were about to be scolded by a parent. Nevertheless, they nodded.

 **~•~**

Han sat in the _Falcon's_ main hold and wearily rubbed his temples. His forehead was creased with worry, though it subtly resembled stress. Perhaps it was a combination of both.

The twins sat across from him, and they looked no better. Their faces were contorted into looks of acceptance and a tinge of shame. Han had yet to say anything.

They had retuned to the _Millennium Falcon_ to "talk". Luke and Leia had done all the explaining while Han listened. At first, the young pilot had seemed mildly amused. That didn't last long.

He now realized just how twisted of a situation they were in. Vader was after Leia, and now possibly Luke. And why? The solution continued to elude him, and everyone else, for that matter. Now that Luke and Leia knew they were twins, the whole ordeal was ten times more complicated.

What were Owen and Beru going to say? Or Bail and Breha Organa? The twins would want to stay together, obviously, and Han understood that entirely. But he _also_ understood that they _couldn't_ be with the same family.

Luke couldn't be Prince of Alderaan, and Leia couldn't be a moisture farmer on Tatooine. They had to go back to their individual homes. The hard part was going to be breaking that news to _them._

Leia finally found the nerve to speak up.

"So. . ." she started. "What do we do?"

Han lifted his head from his hands.

"I don't know, Your Worship," he said. "If my. . . _instincts_ are correct, you two already have a plan."

Luke squirmed. Leia let out a nervous giggle that ended in some type of groan. Han gave an exhausted sigh.

"All right. Let's hear it," he said.

Luke pointed at Leia, who said, "Why _me?_ "

Luke replied, "Because it was _your_ idea!"

Leia tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, sneaking in an angry glance at her brother.

"Um. . .well. . .I was thinking. . .maybe we could. . .go to Ben Kenobi's home?" she said, as hesitantly as was apparently possible. Han's head sunk back into his hands, earning a wince from Leia.

"Ben _Kenobi_?" Han asked, voice muffled.

"Uh-huh."

"As in, the old hermit from a couple days ago?"

"Uh. . ."

"Why in the _worlds_ would you wanna go _there_?"

Leia cringed and nudged Luke.

"Hey! Why me?" he objected.

"Because _I've explained enough!_ "

"Sheesh, okay!" Luke said, shying away. The younger boy looked at Han.

"Well, we think Ben might be able to help us sort things out," Luke said. He made sure to avoid eye contact with Han when the pilot replied.

"That old man will make things _worse._ No. You're not going."

Leia yelled a very passionate, "Hey!"

Han, for some reason, felt the need to sit up straight, so he did. Leia continued.

"I've had a _really_ messed up few days! The galaxy's most evil inhabitant is after me, and I just discovered I have a _twin!_ And not just any twin! It's the EXACT BOY I've been hanging around since I _got_ here! I'm a confused teenager with weird powers, a long lost twin brother, and I'm also the future ruler of a _planet._ You have _no_ right to deny me the opportunity to be normal again! We. Are. _Going!_ Do I make myself _clear?!_ "

Leia slammed her hand onto the game board for emphasis, and it accidentally whirred to life. The hologram images took the edge off of Leia's big finish, but she ignored it.

In front of her, Han almost seemed to cower in his seat—he had leaned a good distance away from Leia. He was clearly considering his options. After a very drawn-out few seconds, he threw his hands in the air.

"Fine! You know what? Whatever! _Go_ there! But I'm comin' with." He jabbed a finger at himself.

Leia grinned.

"I knew you'd come around."

"Yeah, well, your rough-space-pirate voice is pretty convincing."

"Ha, thanks! It also works on bartenders."

Han raised an eyebrow and said, "I don't even wanna know."

 **A/N: Aaaaand, that's a wrap on Chapter 27! Hope you enjoyed it!**  
 **Comment your thoughts, opinions, constructive criticism, ideas, anything!**

 **Leia apparently has a very effective method of getting what she wants, haha. I wonder if she ever used it in the palace...0_O**  
 **Okay! Once again, hope you all liked the chapter, and thanks for reading!**  
 **Byeeeeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	28. Chapter 28: Contemplation

**A/N: Hey there! How's it going?**  
 **Welcome to Chapter 28, everyone! I had to work extra hard on this chapter to make it kinda interesting, and school starts for me on August 29 (so, Monday). High school, here I come! *hides in closet***

 **So, as ShinyShiny9 would say, on to the inevitable train wreck!**

 **WHEEEE!**

"I'm hot," Leia complained. "And tiiiiired."

Han shot her a very unsympathetic glare.

"Yeah? _You're_ tired? You're not even _walking!_ " he shot back.

Han had a point. He, Leia, Luke, and Chewie had decided to start the trip to Ben Kenobi's house. Some necessary discussions concluded that they wouldn't be stopping back at Luke's house, for fear his aunt and uncle would make matters worse. Instead, they settled on making the trek on foot. It wasn't ideal, but it was simpler.

So, Han had thrown some food and such into Leia's satchel, and the group left the refuge of the _Falcon._ About a half hour into their journey, Leia had insisted she couldn't walk any further in the heat. Due to Han's lack of patience, Leia was now perched atop Chewbacca's furry shoulders. Well, she _was._ She had slumped to a more relaxed position that made her look like Chewie's backpack.

"Whatever," Leia mumbled. She shifted her gaze to Luke, who refused to be more than five feet away from his sister. Was this how they were always meant to be? Close together and happy in each other's company? Because she was okay with that.

The whole thing was crazy. Leia had a brother. A _twin_ brother. Never in a million years would Leia have guessed that. And, now that she had time to think about it, there had been so many signs. Leia had been completely oblivious, a fact that made her mad. The clues were so _obvious._

Things like the way Owen and Beru looked at her. They had even asked about her _age._ There was also the feeling Leia had always had. The feeling of a subtle emptiness, a longing for completion. But of all things she was missing. A _twin brother?_

And that wasn't the only crazy thing. The _actual_ unbelievable thing was the way it had all come together! What are the odds?

Leia had picked _that night_ to run away. And on _that night_ , the _Millennium Falcon_ was in the shipyard. If Leia would've waited one more night, Han would've left the planet. And _that ship_ just happened to be going to _Tatooine._ And Han had tried to talk her out of going! But for some reason, Leia had her heart set on going to Tatooine. And _that planet_ was the very home of Luke Skywalker. Her twin.

AND, if she hadn't run from Han's ship, she would've never went to Mos Eisely. In _that town,_ she met Luke Skywalker—HER TWIN! Then, in a series of misadventures, the two had discovered they were biologically related.

Leia could _almost_ believe it happened. To _someone else._ Not to her!

That was only the tip of the iceberg. There were still so many questions that needed answers. Things like: who were her real parents? She knew Anakin was their father, but what about their mother? What did their birth parents look like? Where were they now? Were they dead? Alive?

Leia had been given to her Father and Mother when she was just an infant. So. . .did their parents leave immediately after the twins were born? Or. . .was there an accident? Did their parents die? Is that why the twins were adopted?

But. . .the most important question, to Luke and Leia, was this: _why were the twins spilt up?_ Why did Luke and Leia get passed on to separate families? Leia couldn't image living on Tatooine now, but why hadn't she been sent there with Luke? Didn't they _want_ the twins to grow up together? There must be a _reason_ Leia was separated from her brother. . .right?

 _"There has to be a reason. . ."_ Leia thought.

Luke looked up at Leia. He had to smile. She was dangling precariously on Chewie's back, her arms swinging at her sides. Chewbacca appeared unaffected, as if Leia weighed no more than a feather.

Luke's sister looked like she was deep in thought. Her chocolate colored eyes gazed towards the horizon. Her mouth was quirked up in a small half-smile.

As Luke was studying her, Leia shook herself back to reality and met his eyes.

"Thinking about something?" Luke asked. Leia groaned and buried her head in Chewie's fur.

"Obviously," she said. It came out sounding like, "Oviuffly." Leia pulled her head out and continued.

"What? How can you _not_ think about it?"

Luke pretended not to understand.

"Think about what?" he asked, earning an eyebrow-raise from Leia.

"Luke," she said. "You know exactly what I mean."

"Even _I_ get what she's talkin' about, Kid," Han cut in. Leia held up a hand.

"Han, you have absolutely _no_ idea. You've never been in a situation like this!"

"Maybe not. But I get it. It's confusing stuff, and I don't blame you for being nervous. I'd be handling it way worse than you two are. In fact. . .I'm surprised you took the information as well as you did."

Leia and her brother shared a look.

"And, you know," Han rambled on, "considering how young you guys are, I'm surprised you even figured it all out! How did that work, anyway?"

"I. . .I really don't know," Leia said truthfully. "It all happened pretty quickly. . .I think I just said to say the name of our real father."

Han made a, "Go on," motion.

"So, me and Luke said the name of our corresponding birth fathers. . .and they have the same name. Anakin Skywalker. That's not just a coincidence. I mean, how many Anakin Skywalkers exist in the universe?"

She avoided mentioning the inexplicable feeling of assurance that confirmed her and Luke's relationship.

"Yeah," Luke agreed. "After that, we kinda freaked out, but in a _good_ way."

Han continued, "I'm still confused how you guys knew. I gotta say—I'm impressed."

After that, conversation died down for a while. It was just the four of them, dragging their feet through endless sand. Well, three, if you don't count Leia, who was still draped over Chewbacca's shoulders.

To pass the time, Leia adjusted her body to a more upright, sitting position.

"Hey, Han?" she called down. He looked back at her.

"What?"

"Can you hand me my satchel?"

"What's the magic word, Princess?"

"Allow me to rephrase that. Hand me my satchel. _Now_."

Han narrowed his eyes and proceeded to throw Leia's leather bag at her. She caught it, though she almost tumbled to the ground in the process.

"What do you want with it?" Han asked.

"Well, first of all, it's mine. Second, I need to journal. A lot's been happening lately."

"Who cares? Nobody's gonna read that book of yours anyway. Why write in it?"

"It'll be fun to look back on one day. There's _always_ time to journal."

"Whatever you say, Your Highness."

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Okay, I know it's been a while since I've written here. And just a heads up. . .it'll probably be a while before I write here again. We have a lot planned, but I thought I'd update you. Wait, who's "you"?_

 _Whatever. I'm talking to inanimate objects now. That's the least of my worries._

 _So, to put the whole thing in a nutshell, me and Luke are twins. I know—it's insane! We just found out. . .earlier today, actually!_

 _It's complicated, to say the least. We just started talking about what a coincidence it was that we both didn't know our birth parents, we both had that power (a power that surely has a name), and we share a birthday._  
 _I think, for the first time in a while, Luke and I started to really THINK._  
 _Then, I told him that we were going to say the name of our birth fathers on the count of three. When the countdown was done, the same word came out of our mouths: Anakin._

 _That's our dad's name! And it's the same! So. . .that was another thing to add to the coincidence pile._

 _Further exploration proved that they weren't coincidences at all! They were actually very clear signs that me and Luke are siblings! And, what's more, our birth date confirms that we're TWINS! We don't look much alike though. . .maybe I'll ask someone about that someday._

 _Me and Luke are probably the happiest people in the galaxy now._  
 _And, obviously, this revelation just surfaced millions of new questions. Questions that we hope Ben can answer._

 _Ben is that old man I last wrote about. He seemed pretty wise, though that's not the preferred word I'd use. Wise. . .insightful. . .I don't know. But he used to be a Jedi, and Father's told me plenty about Jedi. If anyone can fix this mess, it's Ben. I hope, anyway._

 _So that's where we're headed. Luke and Han are walking alongside Chewbacca, who I'm currently riding. I'm using his head as a place to set this book as I write, so I hope he doesn't mind. I doubt he can even feel it._

 _It's been a hot and bumpy ride so far. I'm not sure how far away the "Junland Wastes" are, but Ben's home will be somewhere out there. We're hoping for the best._

 _It would've been so much easier to take Owen's speeder again. . .but we stole that once already and it got hit by a blaster bolt. We didn't want to risk Owen and Beru telling us we couldn't go. They don't seem to like the old hermit, for reasons I don't think I'll ever know._

 _The Suns are setting now. Wow. It's funny how I've grown accustomed to saying "Suns", as in plural. Alderaan only has one sun, as far as I'm concerned, and it would be strange to have it any different._

 _Ugh, Alderaan. I really shouldn't mention it, because it sprouts a whole other stream of questions and thoughts._

 ** _What_** _am I going to tell Father and Mother? If I tell them about Luke, they'll_ ** _never_** _let me leave the planet again! And that's not something I'm willing to risk! They've obviously jumped through hoops to configure this whole "switched at birth" deal, so what would they do if they knew we found out?_

 _Although. . .I do really miss Mother and Father! I've been gone so long now. . .I've lost count! It must've been a standard month, at the very least, right? Maybe not. I don't know._

 _My family has to be worried out of their minds. I hope they don't think I'm dead or something. . .that'd be the exact opposite of what I want them to think. Even though they're not my BIRTH parents, they're still my parents. And believe it or not, I really do love them._

 _They've put their every effort into raising me properly and giving me a great life. I probably seem ungrateful, don't I? I promise, I'm not! I appreciate every single thing they've done for me! And now. . .I've almost forgotten why I ran away. Almost._

 _I still remember it was because they were shoving me into some social ordeal I didn't want any part of. Compared to my life now, that seems pretty trivial._

 _I'm not helping, am I?_

 _Ugh, I better go. Maybe, if I'm lucky, I'll fall asleep back here. It doesn't seem like we're any closer to Ben's house than we were an hour ago. It's not like there are any landmarks. This desert just goes on forever._

 _Like I said, this will most likely be my last entry for a while. Maybe when all this chaos is over, I'll pick up journaling again. But something tells me I won't have the time for a while._  
 _Bye for now. . ._

 _-Leia_

The Princess closed her journal with a sigh. She was going to miss journaling, but she had to make time for other things. If Vader was still after her, she'd need to devote every bone in her body to keep running. Figuratively, of course. But if she actually had to run, she could probably do that too.

Leia tossed her closed journal and pen back to Han. He caught it with a startled noise and gave her a "Seriously?" look. Leia only grinned and settled back to endure the rest of the ride.

 **~•~**

In another part of the galaxy, Lord Darth Vader was having his own problems.

After revealing his thought that Princess Leia had caused the brief disturbance in the Force, Vader had been instructed to find out as much about her as he could.

So, he was now busying himself by sorting through her records.

 **Name: Princess Leia Organa**

 **Home planet: Alderaan**

 **Father: Viceroy Bail Organa**

 **Mother: Queen Breha Organa**

 **Brother(s): none**

 **Sister(s): none**

 **Has shown political interest throughout her life.**

 **Has been known to disobey orders and has often run away from home.**

 **Height: 4 feet, 10 inches.**

 **Weight: 89 lb. 11 oz.**

 **Hair color: brown**

 **Eye color: brown**

The records then displayed a small holoprojection of a photo. The picture was of none other than Leia herself. Darth Vader studied the photo, realizing how very familiar the girl looked.

Vader had seen Princess Leia before, of course. That had been many years ago, when Leia was very young. Her father, Bail, had decided to let her tag along on one of his governmental meetings. A ceremony, in fact.

While there, Leia wandered off—directly into Vader. At the time, the Dark Lord had payed the girl no mind. That is, until she started talking to him.

"Hey, aren't you. . .Darth Vader?" she had asked.

Vader nodded a confirmation, wary of where the conversation was headed and not interested in conversing with a child.

"My daddy says you're dangerous."

"That is the opinion of many, Princess."

"You don't _look_ dangerous. Except for that mask. What's it for, anyway?"

"That is none of your business. I suggest you go find your father, child."

"What are you doing here?"

"I am representing the Emperor."

"The Emperor? I don't like him."

Vader had cocked his head, intrigued.

"I see. Has your father told you lies about him as well?"

"No, I read that the Emperor believes that slavery is okay. And he hurts people. I don't agree with that. It's wrong."

"You are wise beyond your years, young one."

"Really? Is that good?"

"It depends, I suppose, on how you _use_ that wisdom."

"Can you use wisdom as a Senator? Because that's what _I'm_ gonna be, someday."

"That is quite an ambitious goal."

"Is _that_ good?"

"I don't see why not."

Then, the girl's father had come to drag her away, apologizing fervently the whole time.

"I'm very sorry, Lord Vader," Bail had said. "I hope she wasn't any. . .trouble."

Vader shook his head slowly.

"No. Your daughter is. . .different, I must say." With that, Vader had given a nod and stalked away.

Behind him, Vader could hear Leia cheerfully reporting, "Daddy! He called me _ambitious_! What does 'ambitious' mean?"

But that had been at least seven or eight years ago. That was Vader's first and last meeting with the Princess. He hadn't seen her since and did not care to, especially considering her striking resemblance to someone he would rather forget. . .

Now, he wondered why he hadn't sensed anything odd about her back then. He had no idea she was Force-sensitive until just a handful of days ago. What had she done to cause the tremor in the Force? And did she _know_ how powerful she truly was?

All would be answered in time, he supposed. For now, he would wait for further instruction. But. . .he couldn't stop thinking about how Leia resembled someone Vader used to know. The Princess _definitely_ reminded him of someone. Someone who's name he would not speak again, for the memories that came along with it were too much to bear.

 **A/N: Hello again, buddeeeezzz! How'd ya like it? Lemme know, as always ;)**

 **I'm looking forward to the next chapter, because A.) It's pretty funny, and B.) they meet Obi-Wan (again)! But no spoilers. None.**

 **Okay, have a lovely day/night, thanks for reading, wish me good luck in high school haha, and. . .**

 **Byeeeeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	29. Chapter 29: Give 'Em A Break

**A/N: Hello there! So. . ,I know it's been longer than usual. I usually update every three days, but GUESS WHO STARTED HIGH SCHOOL! Me, that's who. And lemme tell ya, it's not exactly easy.**

 **So my updating schedule is gonna have a little bitty change. And by little bitty, I mean humongous.**

 **Basically, I'll be updating on the weekends when I hastily shove aside my homework and pounce on the computer.**

 ***shoves aside homework and pounces on computer***

 **So yeah. I unfortunately cannot guarantee frequent updates but they'll definitely HAPPEN, every weekend, when I can. It makes me wonder if anybody actually had been waiting for this chapter, so lemme know if you were. I'm just curious, haha.**

 **I won't bore you any longer with my chit-chat. Enjoy!**

Many hours later, the Suns had already set past the horizon of hazy sand dunes. The whole group was excessively tired and worn out, but they were able to keep moving—barely.

Leia, though, was beginning to feel her eyelids getting heavier and heavier. Soon, she was asleep; her head, buried in her arms, rested on Chewie's head. Unfortunately, when she fell asleep, Leia's body relaxed, therefore not retaining enough strength to hold herself up. By the time Leia realized she was falling, it was a little too late.

Han turned his head defensively when he heard a soft thud behind him. When he peered closer, he realized it was actually Leia—she had fallen off of Chewbacca and was lying painfully on the ground.

Now wide awake, Leia made a noise that resembled an angry groan.

"Hey, you okay?" Han asked as Luke helped the Princess up. She rubbed her head.

"Yeah, tailbones are overrated."

Han stifled a laugh while Leia continued.

"Is it just me, or is the ground really hard right here?"

Luke and Han considered that point. The ground was definitely not soft with sand any longer. It had progressively morphed into a hard, solid substance. . .rock, most likely.

Han stomped his foot to test the ground.

"Wait, hang on," Leia said. She took several careful steps forward. Her eyes could be seen scanning the ground ahead of them. She inched forward again, then halted with a gasp.

After a few seconds, she yelled, "Hey, guys? You might wanna come see this!"

Chewie, Han, and Luke followed her voice, making sure to watch their footing just in case. When they found Leia, she was pointing an insistent finger at something below them. The boys turned their eyes downward.

"Well, it's a good thing we looked before we kept walking," Han observed.

A mere three feet in front of them, the sand-turned-rock dropped off into a steep ledge. It was more of a tall hill, but if it were any steeper, it'd be a cliff.  
Hundreds of boulders and sharper rocks covered the whole hill, preventing any easy way down.

"Any ideas?" Luke asked, looking down the small cliff with hesitance.

Leia gave everyone else a quizzical look and said, "I don't know. How good are you guys at rock climbing?"

 **~•~**

"Rise, Lord Vader," said the Emperor. Vader, who was kneeling before the dark throne, slowly stood up.

"My Master, the soldiers failed to bring the Princess to me. I am requesting permission to conduct a search of my own."

The Emperor looked thoughtful from beneath his black hood.

"You have my permission, Lord Vader. Should you find Princess Organa, you shall bring her before _me._ Understood?"

"As you wish, Master."

"You have your orders. You may go."

Vader turned and exited the throne room with the stride of someone determined. He was going to find Princess Leia if it killed him. However, what he would do after that. . .well. He had no idea.

 **~•~**

"Of all your ideas," Han was saying, "this has gotta be one of your worst."

His comment was directed at Leia, but she was too busy to respond right away.  
The group had found out that there was really only one way down the mesa-like mound of sand and rocks: climb.

Leia was the most agile so far, with Chewie coming in a close second. But none of them were finding it _easy._

The rocks were piled on top of each other and formed an incredibly steep slope, which meant that any step could possibly result in an avalanche. This information did little to calm anyone's nerves.

"Well," Leia finally responded, out of breath. "It's not _my_ fault the ground drops off here! This is the only way down."

Han was looking for a safe place to put his right foot when he said, "We could've went around!"

"No, we couldn't have! The other side just drops off into a canyon! _You_ could've stayed be _hind_!"

Luke yelped as a rock broke off the ledge above him and barely missed his left hand.

"Hey, watch where you're stepping up there!" he yelled.

"I'm _trying!_ " Han and Leia chorused.

Chewbacca had begun the descent first, placing him below everyone else. Luke came next, though he insisted he should go last, and Leia started down after him. Han went last, which put him closest to the top.

The actual climb was going slower than they'd anticipated. With every step, small pebbles crumbled off the wall and hit the people below. Though made out of rocks and sand, the cliff-face was incomprehensibly smooth. Very few foot/hand-holds were visible, much less _sturdy_. Not to mention, a fall from this height would definitely be enough to badly injure an average person, if not _kill_ them. Then, of course, there was also the fact that it was _nighttime._

It was _dark._

Leia realized all of those points and thought, "No pressure."

It was going to be a long night.

 **~•~**

An hour later (an hour and a half? Two hours?), the foursome neared the land below them. Chewbacca was the first one to reach solid ground, and he made sure to let everyone know it was almost time to hop down.

Luke came next, and he couldn't have been happier to plant his feet firmly in the sand. He immediately sprawled out on the ground and spread his arms and legs to the side.

Luke let out a content, "Ahhhhhh."

Leia, who was coming down next, slipped and fell the last few feet. She landed on the ground with an, "OW!"

Han was the last one to scramble down the cliff-face.

"You okay?" he asked Leia, who was still sitting on the ground, looking morose.

"Yep. I'm good. Tailbones are overrated, remember?" the Princess answered, stumbling to her feet. "But that's all I can handle for tonight. We need to find a place to sleep. I think Luke's _already_ asleep."

That much was true. Luke had fallen asleep almost as soon as he laid down, and he was now out like a light, face turned towards the dark sky.

"Why don't we just stay here for the night?" suggested Han.

Leia gestured to the cliff behind them and said, "Here? Right next to the rocks? Isn't that. . .I don't know, _dangerous?_ "

"How is it dangerous?"

"There could be an avalanche overnight! Or some sand creature could come and kill us while we sleep! Or—" she gasped—"what if we _drown?_ "

"Leia, you can't drown in sand."

"Uh, yeah, you _can._ You could roll over, accidentally bury your face in it, and it could get into your nose and mouth, therefore preventing your breathing and _killing_ you. _Or_ , this could be quicksand, and we could all sink while we're asleep—"

"It seems like you've really thought this through."

"Better to be safe than sorry, right?"

"I. . .guess so."

"So, you see my point?"

"Theoretically, sure. But we don't have any other options."

"Whatever!" Leia crossed her arms. "But when an avalanche buries you in your sleep, don't expect sympathy from me."

"Got it."

So, on that note, Leia plopped down next to Luke and stretched out in the sand, which was still warm from the Suns shining on it that afternoon. Han settled down not too far away and tossed Leia's bag in her direction. It landed on her stomach.

Leia didn't bother to express her annoyance, so she just curled up into a tighter ball and fell asleep.

About an hour later, Luke woke up. He glanced around him and took note of their location: right next to the cliff-face. A few feet away, Leia was sprawled out, looking kind of uncomfortable. Han was a little farther away, and he was sleeping while sitting up; his back was pressed up against the rocks.

Luke didn't have any idea what time it was, nor when he had fallen asleep. But he did know one thing: he was wide awake now. No matter how hard he tried, Luke couldn't get comfortable enough to fall asleep again. He laid on his stomach, his back, his right side, his left side, and even tried sleeping sitting up, like Han. Nothing worked.

His electric blue eyes traveled to Leia. Her brown, leather satchel was lying next to her with the flap half open.

 _Should I?_ Luke thought.

In the end, his curiosity got the best of him, much like the first time he'd opened her bag. Luke reached for it and, very carefully, picked it up. Beside him, Leia stirred, as if she almost knew Luke was touching her satchel.

When he scooted away and opened the satchel, the first thing he found was the tiara. It hadn't changed since the last time he'd seen it, but it still managed to take his breath away. Somehow, even in the dead of night, the small crown glittered with a radiance as bright as the stars in the sky. Luke hastily put it back before it hypnotized him.

The next thing he pulled out was Leia's infamous journal. As soon as Luke's fingers touched it, Leia shot up from her sleeping position.

Luke froze in place, hoping she wouldn't see him if he sat perfectly still. His twin took a look around, blinked, rubbed her eyes, and laid down again.

"She must really be attached to this thing," Luke whispered to himself.

He grasped the journal with two hands this time, taking extra care not to make a single sound. For all he knew, Leia might not be asleep.

When Luke opened the book, he immediately felt guilty. It gave him a feeling of invasion, as if he were trespassing in someone's deepest thoughts, which, technically, he _was._  
Nevertheless, the boy flipped to the last entry Leia had made.

Before long, Luke's eyes widened. The Princess had said, in her journal, that she was taking a break from writing. As surprising as it was, it gave Luke an opportunity he'd been waiting for.

A further exploration through Leia's satchel proved successful when Luke found her pen and a glow rod.  
Then, with the small amount of light he had, Luke began to write on a new page.

 **Diary of Leia Organa - Luke Skywalker Edition**

 _Well, hey there! My name's Luke. You've probably heard of me before, because I'm pretty sure Leia writes about me a lot. I'm Luke (as I just said). Luke Skywalker. And I'm Leia's twin brother!_

 _I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. Leia even wrote about it! And before you get mad at me for invading her personal space, let me explain myself._

 _Leia's been under a lot of pressure lately, and she says journaling takes her mind off of it. So, I just thought. . .maybe I'd give it a try._

 _Yeah, I know. Leia will eventually read this and be really upset with me. But I just needed a place to get everything out. So, here goes nothing._

 _I met Leia about two or three weeks ago. I think. I don't know. We lost track of time._

 _She was in trouble with Rass, who is a big-shot trouble maker that I can beat in anything he throws at me. Including speeder races, just so you know._  
 _I helped her out of it, because she got mad at him and hit the guy. I, personally, thought that she was pretty amazing for being that bold, but I didn't tell her that._

 _We became friends pretty quickly, which should've been our first clue. We hung out and talked by the moisture vaporators, and that's when she told me a really crazy story._

 _This is the general stuff she said: her family, including three oppressive aunts, were making her do something she didn't agree with. When it got out of control, she just decided to run away! She found a ship in Alderaan's shipyard, which she stowed away on. She was on that ship for a while, and even met its pilot (and co-pilot) Han (and Chewbacca)._

 _The ship landed on Tatooine, but she ran away AGAIN, because Han made her mad about something. That led her to Mos Eisley, which led her to a cantina, which led her to Rass, which led her to ME._

 _And that's about as detailed as she got. The whole thing is super complicated. And, to be honest, we only made things worse._

 _We seriously made a habit of running away from EVERYONE. That includes my aunt, my uncle, Han, Chewie, angry cantina customers, Han (again!), stormtroopers, and eventually. . .DARTH VADER!_

 _It turns out, Leia and I share this power that enables us to do things with our mind. Leia used the power on a toolbox or something, and (somehow) it got DARTH VADER'S attention! So, he's pretty much doing everything he can to get to her, though we don't exactly know WHY._

 _A bit later, Leia and I began to really think about all the things we had in common. We're both adopted, we've never left our respective planets, we like the same things, we're great friends, and we share a birthday!_

"Ooh, you're getting to the good part," someone said.

Luke's heart leapt into his throat as he whirled around.

The voice had come from Leia, who was looking over his shoulder with interest. She smiled at Luke's reaction.

The boy clutched his chest and let out a long breath.

" _Geez_ , Leia!" he said. Leia held a finger to her lips and pointed to Han, signaling to be quiet. Luke got the hint, so he continued in a whisper.

"You know interrupting is _my_ thing! And I thought you were asleep."

Leia raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I could say the same about you. And uh. . ." she pointed to her journal, "what are you doing with that?"

"You were reading it as I wrote. You should know."

"I didn't realize I'd given you permission to write in _my_ journal."

"You didn't. But I thought. . ."

"You thought it'd help relax you? That's what I figured."

Luke cast a suspicious eye in her direction.

"So. . .you're taking this really well. You're not mad?"

Leia shook her head and answered, "Nope. Not mad. Surprised, but not mad. If it helps, go ahead."

"Really?"

"Really. I won't read it if you don't want me to. Carry on."

With a nod and a smile, Luke's sister crawled back to her spot and presumably fell back asleep.

Luke was shocked, and his heart rate hadn't completely calmed down since Leia had scared him. But, since she didn't seem to mind, he kept writing.

 _So, anyway, it really made us stop and think. Leia suggested we both say the name of our birth fathers on the count of three. I didn't know where she was headed with it, so I played along._  
 _After she said three, we both shouted out, "Anakin!"_

 _Obviously, that was the game changer. We pretty much figured it out from there that we were siblings. Our shared birth date confirms that we're twins._

 _Neither of us is sure who is the older twin, but I hope it's me. Leia probably hopes it's her, but we don't have a way to find out right now, so. . .let's just say it's me._

 _But that's why we're here: at the bottom of a cliff in the Junland Wastes. An old man, Ben Kenobi, lives out here. He stopped by my house recently and really planted a thousand more questions in our heads. That's a whole other story, and I won't go into much depth. Leia probably tells it better than me, haha._

 _Anyway. These last few days have been especially confusing. It's all a big mess. We hope Ben Kenobi can help us sort things out. He's a Jedi, after all._

 _It's been a nice change to write in here. I should get myself one of these journal things. It really does help. No wonder Leia loves this book so much!_

 _I should get to sleep. Thanks for letting me write in you, and I hope Leia picks up writing again soon. Bye!_

 _-Luke Skywalker_

He closed the journal gently and scrambled back to Leia's side. Soon, the journal was back in her satchel, and Luke was asleep.

 **A/N: Well, whaddya know. Luke is a developing journaler! Who knew, right?**

 **I hope you liked that chapter, and I hope the new updating schedule doesn't upset anyone that consistently reads this story (raise yo' hand if that's you). With that, have a great day/night, and I'll see you next time! Byeeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	30. Chapter 30: Crushes Are For Kids

**A/N: HELLO AGAIN! It feels like it's been forever since I've updated, but it's only been, like, a week. I know it's a little late in the weekend, but I've been busy busy busy. My school went on a "retreat" from Wednesday to Friday, which was basically this: a three-day field trip in the woods with all the annoying people from school. It was. . .interesting.**

 **Let's just say I'm glad to be back in the land of wifi and air conditioning.**

 **At this point, I know you've either skipped over all that stuff or you're now just pretending to care, hehe. So, I won't bore you any longer. On to the chapter! WHEEEEE!**

The next morning, Leia woke up first. Clearly her body was adjusting to the new routine. The Suns, however, seemed to be taking their time as they slowly lit up the sky. Nobody else was visibly awake.

To pass the time, Leia rolled onto her stomach, grabbed her satchel, pulled out her journal, and flipped through it. She skipped back to her second entry she'd ever written. It read:

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _Well. I know I said I wouldn't be writing here anytime soon. . .but here I am. I mean, how hard can it be? It wouldn't be so bad if I wrote in here again, would it? Father says that journaling can help express your inner thoughts and help relax you. . .or something like that. I fail to see how writing what you think can RELAX you. But I digress._

 _I just came up with a bunch of questions today that nobody's ever thought to answer. For example. . ._

 _Why doesn't everyone just live on one huge planet?_

 _Why are there DIFFERENT planets?_

 _Why are there aliens?_

 _Why isn't the galaxy just humans? Or maybe just aliens?_

 _Why does the galaxy have an emperor? What does the Emperor look like? Is he as kind as people say he is? I doubt it. So, why do I doubt it?_

 _Well, the answer is quite simple. I know a lot of people are told complete_ ** _lies_** _about the emperor. They're told that he's the nicest person in the galaxy. That can't be true! I've heard that the Emperor has slaves, and that's awful! Slavery is horrible! People shouldn't be forced to do degrading tasks, every day, with no pay, for the most cruel man in the universe! I just can't express that actual opinion because everyone looks at me like I grew a second head._

 _My parents agree with me, of course. They just don't like me to tell other people what I think. It's not my favorite rule._

 _I don't actually have a favorite rule. Speaking of rules, here are some new editions to Rules Leia Must Follow From Now On:_

 _1.) No climbing on top of the water fountain._

 _2.) No cutting holes in my leggings._

 _3.) No sliding through the halls in my socks._

 _4.) No walking on my balcony railing like a tightrope._

 _If I didn't know any better, I'd think my family didn't want me to have any fun! C'mon, seriously? No climbing on top of the fountain? Where am I supposed to hang upside down? Sheesh._

 _I should go. My tutor is calling me._

 _-Leia_

The Princess smiled fondly at the memory. Her parents had added yet another rule that day: no riding your textbooks down the stairs.

Leia continued to skim her past journal entries. They were very consistent until her thirteenth birthday. Then the journaling seemed to take a big break. It looked like she had just picked it back up the day she'd overhead her Father and Aunt Celly.

"Being thirteen is hard," Leia said out loud.

"No kidding," someone else said. With a little yelp, the Princess turned around to see Luke sitting behind her. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Gosh, Luke! I didn't even know you were up!"

"Just woke up a minute ago. Han's still asleep, so I came over here. Whatcha doing?" He blearily rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"I'm. . .you know. Reading. Reading my journal."

"What for?"

"I don't know! Because I _can._ It's fun to see what I wrote when I was younger."

"Can I see?"

"Uh. . .no. You're lucky I didn't read what _you_ wrote. I was seriously considering it, you know."

Luke gave a nervous laugh. Leia continued.

"But. . .since we're both up. . .maybe we should wake up Han."

Luke's eyes took on a mischievous glint, much like Leia's current expression.

"How?" Luke asked.

Leia looked thoughtful. She motioned for Luke to follow her.

Han was lying flat on his back, a completely different position compared to the past night, although he appeared to be significantly more comfortable.

Leia carefully nudged him with one foot to see if he was actually asleep. Han didn't move. And as much as Leia _really_ despised admitting it. . .Han looked kind of cute when he was asleep.

Perhaps as self-punishment for allowing such a thought, Leia's mind let in an interesting idea. And since Han wasn't going to be waking up anytime soon. . .

"Okay, you pick up his feet, and I'll pick up his arms," Leia instructed, already moving to carry out her task.

Luke asked, "Then what?"

" _Then_ , we pick him up and carry him faaaaaar away."

" _Then_ what?"

"We leave, obviously."

Luke did a double take. And a triple take. Even a _quadruple_ take.

" _What_?!" he shouted, appalled at what his sister was suggesting. Leia slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Shhh! You'll wake him up!"

The Princess slowly drew her hand away, as if she didn't quite trust that Luke would stay silent.

"W—what. . .why. . ." he stuttered.

"Because I don't want him coming with! Whatever Ben is going to tell us is none of Han's business, and we both know it. Now, c'mon. Gimme a hand."

Inwardly, Leia winced. That excuse had not been a _total_ lie, but there was another one that Leia was less willing to vocalize. You see, her incidental "crush" on Han Solo was _maddeningly_ distracting. And, Leia might add, fully involuntary.

She had never _asked_ for such a burden. If anything, she wanted to _avoid_ romantic feelings at all costs. Romance was what got her in this mess in the first place, and she could think of one thousand reasons why her crush was unnecessary.

Crushes were silly things, meant for hopeless romantics and naïve children. Not mature, teenage princesses. Besides, an unjustified emotion had no place in Leia's life. Why should she have to succumb to unwelcome hormonal misfiring?

So she was going to leave the source of aforementioned misfiring in a place where it couldn't confuse her. With everything else going on, Leia didn't have the mental capacity to deal with the extra weight of this crush. But she also felt that this next journey needed to happen between her and Luke, and no one else.

Han would understand.

Probably.

Luke threw his hands in the air, looking defeated and exasperated. Reluctantly, he walked over and grabbed Han's ankles. Leia was already gripping his wrists.

 _Please don't wake up. . ._

"Okay, on three, we lift," Leia whispered. "One. . ."

"We're gonna regret this," Luke said.

". . .two. . ."

"This is a horrible idea."

". . .three!"

Each twin put all their upper body strength into lifting the older boy. It took them a few tries before Han actually lifted all the way off the ground, still limp and asleep.

All the while, Leia prayed that Han wouldn't wake up and see what they were trying to do. Because then they'd go straight home, no questions asked. Not to mention, that would be a really awkward explanation they'd have to give.

"He's really heavy for a fifteen year old!" Leia whispered hoarsely. Luke rolled his eyes, still upset about what they were doing.

"No, you're just really _weak_ for a _thir_ teen year old!"

"If I could reach your shin, I'd kick you." Leia was in no mood for arguing.

"Yeah, I know. That's why I said it."

Luke and Leia proceeded to take extremely small steps away from the cliff-face, still whispering in disagreement.

 **~•~**

Vader landed his shuttle on the soft Tatooine sand.

He stepped out of the shuttle as the ramp lowered, and, to be honest, he wished he was somewhere else.

 _Anywhere_ else.

The hot rays of sunlight beat down on him, quickly penetrating his black clothing. Within moments, Vader was already sweating, which was _definitely_ a sensation he didn't miss. He dug his heels into the sand, only further reminding himself how much he hated the fine, pale grains.

Being back on his home planet didn't exactly bring back many cheerful memories. There were only memories of sand, slavery, and, of course, the death of Vader's mother, which sent a painful dagger through his heart every time the memory resurfaced.

Perhaps there was _one_ memory that wasn't as unpleasant. It had taken place very long ago, but the images were clear as crystal. He could still see her every feature. Her gentle smile. He could hear her soft, soothing voice.

Vader had met _her_ on Tatooine. They were so happy then. So unaware of the struggles and turmoil that the future held. Unaware that one day, they would be violently ripped away from one another, each of them losing the other. . .

But _that_ memory only brought a sickening wave of pain and grief to Vader's mind. He quickly refocused on the task at hand: find Princess Leia.

She was there; Vader could feel it. Yet. . .her signature was very far away. It was present, but it was also distant. And by the looks of it, she was getting farther away by the second. If Vader was going to start moving, he'd better start right away.

Growling to himself, Darth Vader gave the sand a swift kick and stormed off.

 **~•~**

Luke and Leia soon drew the conclusion that they were far enough away from the cliff. It was no longer visible behind them. In fact, _nothing_ was visible from any side, except for pale sand and pebbles. It was perfect.

Leia nodded to her brother and whispered, "Okay, this is good enough. Lower him— _gently_."

The twins took extreme caution in placing Han on the ground. When he was lying back down, and apparently still sleeping like a baby, Luke and Leia took off running in the direction they came from.

"That was cruel!" Luke admitted as they ran.

"I know, but I didn't want him coming with. He'll be fine. Chewie will come looking for him, I'm sure."

"Whatever. But if something goes wrong, _don't_ say I didn't warn you."

"Sure, sure."

Since they were no longer staggering along as they carried Han, it only took them a minute or so to reach the rocky face of the huge ledge. Chewbacca was still sleeping soundly against the rocks.

Leia made a "be quiet" motion, and Luke complied.

"Which way is Ben's house?" Leia asked in a voice barely above whisper. Luke glanced at the horizon and shrugged.

" _What_?!" Leia yelled, only to have Luke clamp a hand over her mouth. The Princess immediately removed the hand and resumed her whisper-tone.

"I thought you said you knew the way!"

Luke shook his head.

"I never said that. I said his house is somewhere in the Junland Wastes! That doesn't mean I know how to _get_ there."

Leia let out a long, dramatic sigh. All things considered, she should have expected something like this to happen, but for some reason, it still managed to surprise her.

"So, _now_ what? Do you at least know the general _direction_ of his house?"

"Uh. . .that way, I think." Luke pointed his finger to their left.

"That way? You _think?_ What if it's the _wrong_ way?" Leia would have been outright screeching if Chewbacca wasn't still asleep.

"Then. . .we can head back the way we came, find Han, and try again."

"That's a horrible plan."

"Well. . .at least you were honest." Luke's indifference was inching Leia closer and closer to the edge of her patience.

"Luke, we can't just head out into the desert with no idea where we're going!"

"Oh, really? Well, the other _billion_ times we headed off into the desert beg to differ!"

"Very funny. We weren't thinking clearly those last few times." Leia threw her arms out to her sides.

"Hey, speak for yourself! I was thinking _very_ clearly."

"Okay, fine! But still! You know we can't just start walking and _hope_ we stumble across this old hermit's house!"

"Can't we?"

" _No._ We _can't._ "

"Says who?"

"Everyone who ever used their common sense!"

"Okay, then I _guess_ we'll go find Han and head back home. That's a shame, you know. We traveled all this way. . .and now you're gonna have to apologize to Han and everything." Luke's tone was condescending, and Leia knew that he was messing with her. But the thought of explaining everything to Han. . .well.

Leia looked strange for a moment. The gears in her head seemed to be turning, very slowly. Finally, she sighed, "Okay. Fine. I mean. . .spontaneity is good, right?"

"That's what you said a while ago, so yeah."

"Alright then. Endless desert, here we come."

Luke made a gesture of victory.

"Okay," he said. "Let's get started!"

"No, _wait_. We have to take food and stuff, don't we?"

"But what about Han and Chewie?"

"We'll leave some stuff for them, obviously. I'm not a monster. Geez."

"So, what are we waiting for? Let's _go_."

"Yeah, yeah, hang on. Lemme grab my bag."

Leia dashed over to her satchel and quickly sorted through it to take inventory, setting aside some food and water for Han and Chewie. The Wookiee was _still_ dozing peacefully to the side, though Leia doubted he was really asleep. He was a Wookiee, after all. With her luck, he was eavesdropping on everything being said.

 _Oh well. As long as he doesn't interfere._

When she was done, the Princess zipped back to her brother, none too pleased about the poor navigation skills. Together, they started off to where they _hoped_ Ben lived.

Not five minutes into their walk, they heard a very loud, "Luke! _LEIA!_ "

"That's Han!" Leia said, resisting the urge to laugh. Han's voice hadn't sounded panicked—just absolutely furious.

Luke started walking a little faster.

"Okay, great. That means he's awake, which means he knows we're gone. I suggest we move a _little_ quicker," he said, glancing anxiously in Han's general direction.

"No problem, bro. Han'll never catch up. Because we—"

"Did you—did you just call me bro?"

"Yeah." Leia hadn't thought about the words, they just came out. "Why? Is that okay?"

Luke smiled. "Yeah. It feels. . .good to hear that."

Leia returned the smile and replied, "Feels good to say it."

 **~•~**

A few hours later, Luke and Leia were beginning to lose patience, which was something they both had a very limited reserve of. The intense sunlight beat down and created a wavy effect on the sand in front of them. Several times, Leia swiped a hand in front of her eyes to clear her vision. Things were starting to look blurry.

Even Luke, who was used to the heat, was starting to slow down. Really, the amount of walking they'd been doing lately was _crazy_. He almost wished he were back home, doing chores.

As soon as the twins were about to give up altogether and just turn around (not that _that_ option was very promising), Luke spotted something not too far away. He squinted at it, and Leia waited, silently pleading that it was what she thought it was.

Out in the distance a little bit, there was a larger pile of rocks and boulders. Even though it was only a mound of rocks, Luke thought it looked suspiciously like what could be a house.  
Leia thought the same, though they were still wary of coming any closer.

"So. . .do you think that's it? Is that Ben's house?" Leia asked, pointing at it. The structure was rounded and shapes similarly to the sandstone homes of the village.

"I don't know. But we've been walking for _hours._ I say. . .we give it a try. What's the worse that could happen?" Luke said.

Leia raised her eyebrows and replied, "That was a rhetorical question, right? Because there are a _ton_ of things that could go wrong."

"Yeah, don't tell me. It'll kill the mood."

"Like our extensive walk through a parched desert didn't _already_ do that."

Luke rolled his eyes. His sister's wit was something he both admired and opposed. "Whatever. Are you coming, or not?"

"Uh. . ." Leia debated her few options. "I'm coming. But _don't_ do anything stupid."

"Hey, I would _never_! _You're_ the reckless one."

"Luke, we both know that's not true. C'mon, let's go."

Both kids made their way closer to the rock pile. As they neared it, a medium sized opening could be seen between the rocks. It strikingly resembled a doorway of some sort, but they couldn't be sure.

Eventually, Leia slowed down out of suspicion, and Luke had to take her hand and drag her closer.

The twins got close enough to thoroughly inspect the pile. Upon further examination, they realized it was _not_ a rock pile. It was, in fact, a cleverly disguised home in the middle of the Tatooine desert!

With a shared look, Luke and Leia crept towards the opening. From what they could see, it was dark inside, which only added to the suspenseful atmosphere building around them. Leia gulped.

When they gathered enough courage, the twins entered.

The inside of the home was dark and (surprisingly) somewhat damp. Various pieces of furniture were scattered around here and there, but they only looked like black shapes in the room.

Suddenly, they heard another noise. It sounded like footsteps, which gave the twins reassurance and fright at the same time. It meant someone was here. . .but who?

The noise got closer. . .closer. . .closer. . .

"Hello there!" an old man said, stepping out of the shadows.

" _Ben_?" the twins chorused.

 **A/N: You're down here already, huh? That's great, because now I can give you a few announcements/excuses/spoiler alerts.**

 **So. Because high school ain't exactly the ritz, my time to write fanfic is quickly becoming smaller and smaller. I write when I get time, which isn't often. I have school Monday-Friday from 8:30 AM-3:30 PM, ballet on Tuesdays and Fridays from 5 PM-6 PM, piano lessons on Thursday from 4:00 PM-4:30 PM, and homework every day except Wednesday. There's also my Instagram art account I have to manage (kwebber_foreverr. . .follow meh if ya want), and spending time with friends. My life is kinda crazy right now, so that brings me to my next point: my updating schedule may change yet again.**

 **I'm planning on updating every weekend, like I said. HOWEVER. It might change to every OTHER weekend, but not yet. For the time being, the schedule remains the same as I last told you.**  
 **Enough about me. Let's talk about the STORYYY!**

 **YES, Luke and Leia have FINALLY arrived at Obi-Wan's house! Next, "Ben" is gonna answer aaaaallll their questions, no matter how odd. Obi-Wan is gonna be telling some stories. . .some truth, and some "true from a certain point of view", ya know? And they have many questions. Therefore, I'm wondering if YOU GUYS (and gals) have any questions you have. Ask me anything—about the story, about me, or maybe something you want the twins to ask Obi-Wan! Just curious as to what you all are thinking so far!**

 **Well. That was possibly the longest authors note I've written so far. Sorry 'bout that.**

 **Now, I'm off to eat Moose Tracks ice cream because I'm a, ". . .teenage girl who doesn't have control of her emotions and thinks she needs endless amounts of sugar 24/7. . ." (That was the words of my mom. Raise yo' hand if ya like sugarrrrr.)**

 **Okay. Byeeeeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	31. Chapter 31: The Story

**A/N: Okey-Dokey, I gotta make this a quick authors note because my family is leaving for Chicago in ten minutes and they will not hesitate to leave without me if they find out I'm typing fanfiction right now. I won't keep you long, so enjoy the chapter! XD**

"Ben" took a few more steps forward and spread his hands in a welcoming manner.

"Welcome to my humble abode," he greeted with a chuckle. Luke and Leia exchanged nervous glances. Obi-Wan continued.

"What brings you two here? Luke, your aunt and uncle are _very_ worried. And Leia, you owe Han an apology, I believe."

"How did you—?" Leia began.

Obi-Wan held up a hand to silence her. Then, he explained, "The Force works in many mysterious ways. And it seems that's what you've both come here to discuss. Is that correct?"

"Uh. . .we. . .yeah," Luke stuttered. Leia backed up his answer with a nod. Why did this man always know exactly what was going on? It could be helpful, but it was _creepy_.

"Well then," Obi-Wan said, motioning to a few uncomfortable-looking benches. "You'd better have a seat. We have _much_ to discuss."

"Yeah, for sure," Leia agreed, eagerly plopping down. Immediately, she reached a hand behind her and pressed it to the small of her back. A hiss of pain escaped her lips. When Obi-Wan and Luke shot her some concerned looks, Leia sought to explain herself.

"Oh, uh, sorry," she said. "Stone seats don't mix well with already sore tailbones, you know?"

"Ah," Obi-Wan nodded. "It must have been a long and tiresome trip. I hope the terrain wasn't too disagreeable."

"Well. . .it wasn't exactly _easy._ We went through a lot to get here," Luke said, crossing his arms. "You have plenty of explaining to do."

"Oh? I wasn't aware _I_ was the one who needed to explain the order of things. I've been led to believe that you two have gotten into a fair share of trouble lately."

"I wouldn't call it _trouble._ It was more like. . .adventure."

"Call it what you will, young one. But I know what you've been doing."

"Okay, so start talking," Leia piped up. "What are you not telling us?"

Obi-Wan wore the expression of someone caught in the very awkward act of lying. He wondered how much the twins would ask him. . .and just how much he would be able to tell them.

He decided on saying, "Alright then. I'll let you ask the questions, and I'll answer them as best as I can."

Leia bluntly started the question barrage with, "How long have you known we were twins?"

Obi-Wan's usually _calm_ face began to quickly change into a very _shocked_ face. For perhaps the first time in his life, Obi-Wan Kenobi was at a loss for words.

"Well?" Leia pressed on. "How long have you known?"

Obi-Wan finally managed to stutter out, "I. . .well, I—I. . .how long have _you_ known?"

"A few days now," Luke said. Leia crossed her arms over her chest.

"So you _did_ know!" she exclaimed. "How _long_ have you known?!"

"I—"

"C'mon, we _know_ now. Don't lie about it. Be honest."

"I've known since. . .well, since you were born."

Silence fell upon the group like a fog. For what seemed like forever, nobody said anything else. Obi-Wan sat with his hands in his lap, staring solemnly at the floor. He didn't dare look at the twins, who were both lost in their own thoughts.

Leia was thinking about a number of things, as girls do.

 _Since we were born? He knew us since we were_ ** _born_** _? He SAW us when we were born? Did he WITNESS our birth? Ew, that's kind of awkward._

 _But. . .he must've been there, right? If he was there, he would know where I was born, WHEN I was born, what TIME I was born, and. . .oh my stars. He would have to know my_ ** _MOTHER_** _._

While Leia sat with her mouth hanging open, attempting to make sense of everything at once, Luke's face only looked confused. His thoughts sounded a little something like this:

 _Wait, so if Ben knew all that since we were born. . .which was almost fourteen years ago. . .huh. I wonder how old he was when we were born. He must've known our parents, too. That's cool—_

 _WAIT A SECOND! If he knew our parents, he could TELL us about our parents!_

Then, something odd happened. Luke heard another thought go through his head, but this one sounded _different_. This one didn't even _sound_ like Luke, or anything he would have thought. But. . .he couldn't quite pinpoint the words, which said, _Duh, Luke. That's called_ ** _logic_** _._

The more he thought about it, the more depth the transmitted words had. Soon, they had a distinct voice to them. That voice sounded familiar. . .

All at once, Luke knew what happened, but he couldn't explain it. It was like a dawn of understanding washed over him, finally allowing him in on some secret he'd been hidden from. That voice was—

"Leia!" Luke yelled, spinning to face her.

His sister jumped a few inches in her seat with a startled expression on her face. Obi-Wan didn't move his eyes from their fixed gaze at the floor. Did he feel what was happening, too?

"What?" Leia said, glancing back and forth between Luke and Obi-Wan. "What did I do now?"

Luke tried his best to get the words out, but he couldn't quite say what he was thinking. He finally shouted, "Leia, I could _HEAR YOU!_ "

There was a startled pause.

The Princess took a long hard look at her brother. Even Obi-Wan now looked up and had his eyes set on Luke.

"Yeah, okay," Leia said. "I'm. . .glad? Luke, since when have you _not_ been able to hear me?"

"No, I mean I could _hear_ you!"

"You're not making any sense! What do you mean?"

"I. . .I could hear you! Your. . .y—your _thoughts!_ "

The room went silent again. Before Leia could open her mouth and tell Luke just how crazy he was, Ben started speaking, attempting to salvage the situation.

"The Force. It runs strong in you both. It seems we have more to discuss than I previously thought. Perhaps I should start at. . .the beginning," he said.

"Yes!" Luke and Leia synchronized, sounding exasperated.

Obi-Wan drew a deep breath and began what was going to be a very long story. Hopefully the twins were prepared.

"Many, many years ago, I, along with my Master, Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn, were enlisted to speak with the Trade Federation on Naboo. The. . .negotiations were less than successful, and to put a long story short, we escaped with the Queen of Naboo and her assistants."

"Wait. . .the _queen?_ " said Leia. Obi-Wan nodded.

"Yes, the queen. The Trade Federation wanted her to sign a treaty, but she refused. So, we managed to get her safely off the planet. However, during the trip to follow, we ran into some trouble. Our ship was nearly destroyed, but the astromech, Artoo-Detoo, saved us all."

Leia spoke up again, saying, "Artoo-Detoo?! Would that be. . .would that be the _same_ Artoo-Detoo back on Alderaan in the palace? Because we have a droid by that name!"

"Yes, it is most likely the same droid. At any rate, we had to land for some repairs. The closest planet was the very one we are living on right now."

"Tatooine?" Luke asked, dumbfounded.

"That's right, Luke. Tatooine. I, Qui-Gon, Artoo, and Jar Jar Binks set off to find the town."

Leia said, "Jar Jar Binks? Who's that?"

Obi-Wan looked as if he'd rather not answer the question, but he said, "He was a Gungan from Naboo. We had run into him earlier, but I left that part out for a reason."

"Oh. Uh. . .carry on, then."

"Right. The queen's handmaiden, Padmé Amidala, insisted on coming with us. At first, we didn't think it was a good idea. Eventually, though, we let her tag along."

"Padmé? That's a pretty name," Leia said, wistfully. The name sounded oddly familiar, but Leia couldn't remember ever hearing it before. Perhaps she had, long ago.

Ben nodded. "Yes, indeed. You know, she wasn't much older than yourself, at the time. Padmé was only fourteen, at the most. Nevertheless, we all walked to the nearest town. After some searching, we found a small shop, run by an alien creature named Watto. It was there that we met Anakin Skywalker. . .your father."

The twins' mouths dropped open. Hearing their biological father's name was interesting enough, but it was even _more_ exciting to learn about his life. Maybe they were finally on track to get some solid answers.

Even when Obi-Wan continued, their jaws stayed slack.

"He was a young boy, around the age of nine or ten. Though he was a slave to Watto, Anakin was the most gentle, kindhearted child you'd ever see. He was immediately intrigued by Padmé.  
When it came time for us to go, Anakin alerted us to the fact that there was a sandstorm brewing. For that reason, he led us to his home where we stayed for a while. There, we met Anakin's mother, Shmi, and his hand-built droid, See-Threepio."

Leia knew of that droid as well, but she was too interested in the story to mention anything.

"You see, we didn't have enough credits to buy the part we required. As this became the topic of discussion at Anakin's home, he brought the Boonta Eve Classic to our attention."

"What's that?" Luke asked.

"That, child, was a pod race. A pod race was a dangerous and tricky race of _pod racers,_ which were maneuverable vehicles built for speed and racing. Part of the pod race was betting on the racer you thought would win. Your father, though incredibly young, was quite the pod racer. He offered to partake in the race to earn the money we needed for the part. His mother didn't approve."  
Obi-Wan looked at the twins, but they were entirely engrossed in the story. So, he continued.

"Her worry was soon replaced by pride when she recognized his motives. Little Anakin was only trying to help as much as he could, which was his nature. Therefore, he entered the race with his own pod racer.

"The night before the race, Qui-Gon managed to get a blood sample from the boy, because he thought Anakin was. . .special in some way. Further investigation proved that Anakin had the highest midichlorian count ever recorded."

Luke and Leia didn't even bother to ask what midichlorians were. They expected Ben to explain everything in time.

"The next day, Anakin raced. And, even though it looked like all was lost, he _won_. By winning, Anakin got his freedom from slavery, and the opportunity to be trained as a Jedi. His mother, however, was not freed.  
There was great conflict within him when Anakin chose to come with us. He had to leave his mother, and all he'd ever known, behind. It took some help, but he did it.

"I'll skip over everything that is not important to you. But, I will tell you this: we found out that Padmé was really the _queen_ of Naboo."

The twins' mouths opened further.  
Luke took the time to sputter out, "W— _WHAT_?! The Q—Queen! What _aren't_ you going to tell us? What are you skipping?"

"Oh, the boring part, of course."

"What's in the boring part?"

"A Sith Lord, the death of my Master, the Gungan War, and the Ceremony after we defeated the Trade Federation."

Luke exclaimed, "You can't skip all that!"

"I can, and I will. I ended up adopting the responsibility of Master when I took on Anakin as my Padawan. He was then trained to be a Jedi, and Padmé went on to further in politics."

"Did they ever see each other again?" Leia asked, curious about their relationship.

"Oh, definitely. Ten years later, we were told that there was trouble brewing and our services were required once again. We met with Padmé, and Anakin was incredibly nervous to see her again."

"Why?" the twins asked, sharing a look that conveyed that they already knew.

"Well, I am ignoring quite a bit of the story, but she and Anakin started to fall in love, though I didn't realize it, at the time."

Leia squealed with delight. Luke rolled his eyes.

"Then, somewhere in the next few weeks, Anakin's mother passed away. That led him down a different road, causing him to develop a large amount of anger, and hatred. But, that is not the part you need to dwell on. Padmé and Anakin were happily married soon after, but their marriage was kept a secret for years."

"That's _so romantic!_ " Leia shrieked. "They were _secretly_ married! Wait. . .why?"

"Because the Jedi Order forbid attachment in any form, including attachment to family, friends, objects. . .and lovers."

"Well, that's dumb," Leia mumbled.

Obi-Wan decided to ignore the comment.

"A few years later, Padmé became pregnant. . .with twins."

"THAT'S US!" Leia and Luke chorused, grinning wildly.

"That's right. Unfortunately. . .Padmé left us soon after giving birth to the two of you. Your father was devastated. After that, he was never seen again."

Luke and Leia stopped smiling.

"She. . . _left_ you?" Leia ventured, solemnly. "Do you mean. . ."

The reply she got was, "Padmé. . .became one with the Force."

The weight of Obi-Wan's words pressed down on them like rocks. So, that was it then. Their mother was dead, and their father had disappeared into who-knows-where. Not exactly _uplifting_ information.

Obi-Wan seized the opportunity to keep talking.

"You see, that is why you were adopted into separate families. Your birth parents could no longer care for you, so I made it my responsibility to find families that could."

Leia found words first, though it was difficult.

"But. . .that doesn't explain why we were given to _seperate_ families. We were split up."

"Right. That is because you've both inherited your father's gift of the Force. We knew that the Emperor would find you, take you, and turn you into an agent of destruction, much like Darth Vader, who was a pupil of mine until he turned evil."

"Darth Vader was your. . .student?" said Luke.

Obi-Wan nodded grimly and said, "He is living proof of what can happen if you let hate corrupt your very soul. You become someone as dark and heartless as Vader."

Leia asked the inevitable question, "So. . .is our dad. . .alive?"

Obi-Wan thought for a moment before answering, "It is hard to say. He could potentially be alive. . .somewhere. But I believe. . .it would be very hard to find him, if he _were_ alive. I don't believe Anakin Skywalker _wants_ to be neither acknowledged nor found."

A minuscule glimmer of hope sparked in Leia. There was still a possibility that Anakin was alive, and that was good news.

"So. . ." Luke started, "Tell us more about this Force business."

"Ah, yes. The Force is an energy that surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together. Not everyone is born with the ability to manipulate the Force. Your father was given the gift, and so were you two. You just need a little more of an explanation. However. . .that could take time."

Luke and Leia looked around, both thinking the same thing.

"Oh, we've got nowhere to go," Leia finally said. "If you're gonna explain, now's the time."

 **A/N: Hi! Me again! How'd you like it? Had to work super hard on this chapter to make it sound somewhat realistic, which is what I hope happened. I mean, an old man wouldn't be able to tell an origin story without the twins interrupting him. It's a fact of life.**

 **ALSOOO. . .if you re-read the pod racing part of that story, count the number of times Obi-Wan says "race" (or racer, or racing). I'm curious, because I know it's in there a lot, haha!**

 **Well, I hope you liked it! Drop a review if you wanna, and I'll see you next time! Byeeeee!**

 **-Lia 3**


	32. Chapter 32: Houston, We Have Problems

**A/N: Alriiiiiight! I'm back, and I've got a new chapter for ya! Sorry for the delay, but, to put a very long and painful story short, a kid named. . .well, let's just call him Joe, CRACKED one of my ribs. Yes, that's right. CRACKED.**

 **Sooooo that's been real fun to deal with, as you've probably guessed. Ugh.**

 **In other news, fall is here! And September is almost done! WHAAAT! The year has seriously flown by.**

 **Welp, I should let you start reading. This chappie is an interesting one. Leia busts out the ol' tiara again :p**

 **LETS DO DIS. WHEEEEE!**

"The Force is sometimes difficult to explain and comprehend," Obi-Wan was saying. The twins were sitting on the floor in front of him, listening intently.

"It is an energy field that can be manipulated to do the will of men, but _it_ can also influence the decisions of _others._ When someone is strong with the Force, they have a high count of midichlorians, which are certain cells that everyone has. However, only a selected few have _many_ midichlorians.

"Those people are called Force-sensitive, which would be what you two are. Your father, Anakin, had the highest count of midichlorians ever recorded. You inherited your Force-sensitivity from Anakin. That is why you are both so powerful."

"Powerful?" Leia asked warily. "I'm not sure if I like the sound of that or not."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Many Force-sensitives were adopted into the Jedi Order to be trained to use their power for good, like me. The trainees are called Padawan Learners. With proper training, the Padawans become able to bend and manipulate the Force at will. And, if you had been trained correctly, you both would be able to do the same."

"Really?" questioned Leia. "I mean, Luke and I can already _use_ that power—"

"The Force," Obi-Wan corrected.

"Right. We can already use the _Force_ , and we haven't had any training. How does that work?"

"You don't require training to _use_ the Force. Only for _how_ you use it. When a Force-sensitive is trained, they have more options and opportunities for how they can use their ability. What exactly have you done so far?"

"What? With the Force?"

"Yes."

Luke and Leia exchanged glances of uncertainty. They hadn't used the Force to do anything but make their presence known to Vader. How was that supposed to impress a former Jedi master? Leia suddenly felt very amateur and insignificant.

Fortunately, the twins didn't have to answer, because Obi-Wan held up a hand and said, "Never mind. I don't want to know. You two have been causing nothing but trouble lately. I don't expect it to produce a valid use of the Force."

Luke and Leia looked sheepish. Then, Luke spoke up.

"So. . .why can't you just train us? How hard can it be?"

Obi-Wan shook his head sadly. "I'm afraid that's not possible. I couldn't give you the training you require. I'm getting too old for such endeavors, these days. The last thing I need is to train two rambunctious teenagers. It is customary for training to begin when the Padawan is very young."

"What about the other Jedi?" Luke asked, eyes wide with hopefulness. "Can one of them teach us?"

Leia cringed, because she, unlike Luke, was taught about the devastating event that wiped out the Jedi. And it was no fairy tale, either.

Kenobi bowed his head, as if the painful memories had all come flooding back. Leia gave Luke a hard glare.

"Order Sixty-six," said Obi-Wan.  
Luke frowned.

"What?" he asked.

Obi-Wan repeated, "Order Sixty-six. The massacre of the Jedi, and the beginning of the Empire."

"Ooh," Luke grimaced. "Maybe I _don't_ want to hear that story. It sounds. . .like something that can wait."

"No, Luke, I think I should tell you. You will be far better off if you know the truth."

Luke looked to Leia for an answer, and she shrugged. Ben was right. But Leia herself was not necessarily looking forward to hearing the story again. From it, stemmed her loathing of the galaxy's wicked ruler.

"Alright," Luke agreed, though he looked unsure. "Go ahead."

Obi-Wan leaned back and prepared himself for the telling of Order 66. A painful memory to relive, but an important one, all the same.

"Many years ago, after your mother and father were married, the Clone Wars were coming to a close. . .though we didn't recognize it. Chancellor Palpatine, whom you now know as the Emperor, betrayed the Republic when he gave Order Sixty-six to the clone army.

"The clones, obeying Palpatine's order, betrayed and murdered their Jedi comrades. After that, Palpatine, and his new apprentice Darth Vader, disassembled the Republic and began the Galactic Empire. On that same day, you two were born. It was also the day your mother passed, and Anakin Skywalker went. . .missing."

"Oh, great, so not only was my birthday the start of the Empire, but it was also the day my mother died and my father disappeared. Uplifting," Luke said, sighing dejectedly.

"If it makes you feel any better," Leia mumbled, "it's also _my_ birthday. Just saying."

 **~•~**

Vader, who had been dragging his boot-clad feet through the desert for what felt like eons, finally approached the bustling town of Mos Eisely. He paused on the edge of the town for a moment to calmly observe the people and aliens filling the streets and walkways.

Of course, he only appeared calm on the outside. On the inside, Vader's emotions were being tossed and turned in a sea of infinite turmoil. The mere _sight_ of the town brought back enough painful memories to fill a loading dock. Flashes of the past appeared before Vader's eyes, and none of them were mentally reinforcing.

. . . _young Anakin, smiling and happy, jumped into his mother's open arms. . ._

 _. . .Anakin saw_ ** _her_** _, and she looked like an angel. . ._

 _. . .the sun beat down on him as he left his mother behind and joined Qui-Gon Jinn. . ._

 _. . .holding his mother as she died in his arms. . ._

It was at that point when Darth Vader shook himself out of his thoughts and took a look around the area. He noticed that people were making sure to steer clear of him and the spot he was standing in. For a moment, Vader felt peeved. But then he remembered: he was a Sith. Being frightening was part of the job.

He began strolling casually through the town; civilians cleared a path wherever he walked, which was convenient. Everyone whispered amongst themselves, probably wondering why the Dark Lord was in their town.

Vader searched the Force for some sort of clue—where could he find Leia Organa?

His senses led him to a cantina. There was nothing particularly interesting about it on the outside, but Vader supposed it was what (or who) was _inside_ that mattered.

As Vader stalked through the crowds in the building, patrons looked his way and murmured to one another curiously. Their pointing and staring only made Vader more determined to find someone to speak to. Not that he had any problem with attention being on him — it happened a lot. He just preferred that this matter stayed under wraps.

Finally, Vader came upon the front counter, occupied by only a stocky man with oily brown hair, wearing a dirty apron. That man, the barista, appeared unaffected by Vader's presence.

"What can I getcha?" the man asked idly.

Vader placed one hand on the counter and replied, "Information."

The man behind the counter took on a knowing look, almost appearing pleasantly amused.

"Ah," he said, winking. "You're one of _those_ types. Well, it'll cost ya."

"I am _Darth Vader_ , Sith Lord, second in command to the _Emperor._ I suggest you provide what I need, and for free. We wouldn't want to make a scene." Vader's hand traveled subtlety to the lightsaber clipped to his belt.

The bartender put some distance between himself and the Sith Lord. He mulled over his options, finally settling on saying, "Alright, fair enough. What is it you need to know?"

Vader appeared satisfied. "Tell me everything you know about Princess Leia Organa."

" _Princess_ Leia Organa? You'll have to be a little more specific than that, fella. I recognize faces, not names."

"A young girl, small in both size and stature. Brown hair, brown eyes."

"Hey, I've seen a girl kinda like that. Is her hair curly? Does she carry a leather bag around with her?"

". . .I suppose."

"Yeah, I've seen her alright. Heck, I _hired_ her! She was in here with some other kid the one day. They stuck around for a few hours and then took off. Some stormtroopers were looking for 'em not too long ago. Is that her?"

"Yes, that's correct. For what reason would you _hire_ her?"

"She and the other kid were looking for some extra cash, so I hired 'em! If I'd have known she was a _princess_ , it would've been a different story."

"Where did they go?"

"Bah, headed off into the town, I guess. Haven't seen 'em since the stormtroopers were here. Hey, why are _you_ looking for her? Ya know her?"

"That is none of your concern. You have been most helpful today, and the Empire will reward you. Now, as you were."

Vader turned on his heel and grandly exited the cantina with a swoosh of his cape. All heads turned to gawk as he left.

Once he was back outside in the scorching sunlight, Vader grinned slightly beneath the mask. He was one step closer to finding the Princess.

 **~•~**

"So," Leia deadpanned, "our birthday isn't exactly the most joyful moment in history. Anything _else_ we should know?"

Obi-Wan knew in his heart that there were a great deal of things they _should_ know. He just couldn't bring himself to tell them. The twins were so carefree and happy as they were. . ,it would break their hearts to find out about their father.

Obi-Wan had to do what was best for them. That was why he'd separated them in the first place. But. . .was the truth _really_ the best option? He had a nagging feeling that it would backfire in the long run. Of course, that was only a feeling. Perhaps he would keep it from them a little longer. Although, there was _one_ thing he could show them.

"Well," Obi-Wan said curtly, "I suppose there _is_ something I could tell you. But first, do either of you know what a lightsaber is?"

The twins shook their head, and Leia said, "No, but I've heard of that."

Kenobi rose to his feet. "The lightsaber is a distinguished weapon used by the Jedi Knights. They must be built and can be a variety of colors. But, I won't talk about it when I can _show_ you."

Obi-Wan stepped purposefully around the twins and back to an aged, wooden chest. Leia and Luke perked up with curiosity and followed the old man.

He waited for them to stand on either side of him, and he opened the chest.  
Inside, there was a metal cylinder, about as long as Leia's foot. It was a smooth, silver color and featured a small button on the side. Obi-Wan looked at Luke expectantly.

"What? Me?" Luke asked, pointing a finger at his own chest. When the former Jedi master nodded, smiling, Luke tentatively reached out a hand. He fingered the cylinder before picking it up. Leia watched on with peaked interest.

Luke lifted the lightsaber handle and eyed it catiously, holding it at arm's length.

"So, what does it do?" he asked.

"Push the button and find out," Kenobi chuckled. "But, ah—please be careful."

Luke seemed unsure at first, but he eventually pressed the small button.  
A bright blue blade quickly extended from the tube with a satisfying _snap-hiss._ Leia jumped back when it came out, and Luke nearly dropped the lightsaber.

"Be _careful_ ," Obi-Wan warned again. "That blade can slice through almost anything. Even a mere touch can cause painful burns."

"Wow," the twins breathed.

"Incredible." Luke gave the lightsaber a small swing. It produced a low humming sound when it moved. Leia thought that she _definitely_ wouldn't want to be in a fight with a talented lightsaber-wielder.

"That lightsaber," said Kenobi, "was your father's. He used it throughout most of his Jedi training, as well as the Clone Wars. I've had it all this time. He wanted you to have it."

"Really? Awesome!" Luke said.

Leia crossed her arms and pouted, "Hey! What about me?"

Obi-Wan gave a small laugh. "Don't worry," he said. "You two will _share_ that one until you're skilled enough to build your own. In the meantime, keep it safe, and don't lose it. There are people who would do most anything to get their hands on a weapon like that."

Leia and Luke nodded diligently. The young boy pushed the button again, and this time, the blade shot back into the handle with another _hiss._

Luke handed it to his sister and said, "Here, hold on to it until I find a way to clip it to my belt." She nodded and turned it over in her hand, mystified. It was _Anakin's_ lightsaber. And she was actually _touching_ it.

"So," Obi-Wan said, suddenly all business, "I suppose you will need to stay here for the night. Unless, of course, you want to give the desert another chance."

"No, we'll stay here," Leia decided at once. "We've had enough of the desert. At least, _I_ have." Luke rolled his eyes in response.

Later that night, while Luke was already asleep on Obi-Wan's makeshift bed that he had given up for the twins, Leia was having trouble sleeping. She rolled over and stared at the tan walls.

The same thought kept traveling through her mind, over, and over, and over again.

 _This is unreal. This is_ ** _totally_** _unreal._

Leia still had a very hard time believing what was happening in her life. It just seemed like _yesterday_ that she had climbed down the palace wall and exited the garden. Where did the time go? What had _happened?_ One minute, she was a princess, who was treated accordingly (well, sometimes), got three square meals a day, and had more dresses than there were people on Alderaan.

The next minute, she was traveling halfway across the galaxy with an ironically cute smuggler and a Wookiee, landing on Tatooine and meeting her long lost twin brother, and being pursued by Darth Vader for being able to use a mysterious power called the Force.

 _What_ ** _is_** _my life?_

Leia couldn't fall asleep no matter how hard she tried. Instead, she pushed back the scratchy blanket and hopped out of bed. On the floor next to the bed, Leia had set her satchel down. Now, she searched for it in the dim lighting.

She found it, picked it up, and rifled through it, meaning to locate her journal. The first thing she touched was her tiara.

Leia audibly sighed, holding the object up in front of her face. That tiara did nothing but remind her what she had left behind. That seemed so long ago!

She had taken off in the middle of the night, with no idea where she was going. She'd left behind her family, her home, her friends, her belongings, her memories. . .but Leia knew she'd also left a little piece of herself.

All her life, she'd questioned whether she _really_ belonged in a castle. Every day seemed to be a struggle to fit in. There was always that looming knowledge that one day, Leia would be Queen. Her future was already planned out, leaving no room for alteration or really much _speculation._

Everyone told her she would be Queen. Her parents. Her aunts. Her classmates (when she used to attend school as a child). Even _Han_ knew Leia's future would be spent ruling Alderaan. The idea that maybe she _didn't_ have to be Queen. . .well, it simply didn't exist.

But perhaps she'd failed to see the bright side in that situation. Leia was still furious at her aunts, still wary of her parents' rules, still that rebellious, creative, wild, free-spirit that she'd always been. Yet, maybe part of Leia _did_ belong on Alderaan.

The Princess tiptoed over to the only mirror Obi-Wan had in his home. It was small and square, and you could see it had been lined with sandstone. There was an even smaller piece of glass in the middle, _just_ big enough to show Leia's face.

She held the tiara with one hand and gazed at it. It represented a seemingly nonexistent life that she'd perhaps dreamt about. It brought back hundreds of memories that seemed distant and faded. Like now, after she'd been shown freedom and the _truth_ about herself, she could not imagine life being any different.

Leia put the crown on her head before she could stop herself. No particular reason — just for fun. She didn't feel any different until she peeked at herself in the mirror.

If the matter wasn't so serious, Leia might have laughed, for the image in the mirror was rather comical. Leia's mangled brown curls and the desert-worn, dusty tunic clashed tremendously with the glistening jewels of the tiara. From the neck down, Leia looked like a native from Tatooine who had barely any responsibilities and lived happily on their farm.

From the neck _up,_ Leia looked more like a Princess who had servants, countless responsibilities, and was hardly ever truly happy. She looked like the kind of person who would be _Queen_ one day. Except. . .she didn't look happy about it.

Leia's eyes were lifeless, holding no evidence that her future brought about any joy at all. She appeared tired, upset, and maybe even a little afraid.

The young girl felt like gasping. In that mirror, there were _two_ Leias. Though they occupied the same body, they were different in almost every way. One was a Princess. The other was from Tatooine. One was lonely and unhappy. The other was smiling and friendly. One was bored and adventure-seeking. The other was excited and interesting.

Which one was the real Leia? She couldn't tell. She felt as if she had to pick one, because, after all, how could she be two people? That couldn't end well. But. . .which version of herself was going to make her happy?

Leia noticed another difference between her two personalities. One wanted to leave home, and the other wanted to go back. Back to the safety of her room, where she had a comfortable bed and two parents who care about her.

"I can't go back," Leia whispered to her reflection, as if it would emphasize her determination. "I have to finish what I started. I made this mess, and I'm going to clean it up."

 **A/N: *sigh* So remember how I said this was only gonna be 30-35 chapters long? Welllll, the infamous Plot Bunny has recently claimed another victim, and that victim is ME. So. This story is probably gonna extend a liiiiitle bit longer. I'm just seeing where it takes me. Or where** ** _I_** **take** ** _it._**

 **Either way, we'll see how it goes. Lemme know if you liked that chapter and all Leia's personality issues, haha. Can anyone relate? No? Just me? *cricket noises***  
 **Thanks for reading, and see you next time!**

 **Byeeeee!**  
 **-Lia (WITH A CRACKED RIB, THANKS TO 'JOE')**


	33. Chapter 33: Peace Out

**A/N: Hi guys! Okay, I skipped a week, so sorry about that. Life is busy, yada yada yada.**

 **This chapter took a long time; much longer than I expected it to. But I think it turned out pretty good! I'll leave the opinions up to you, though.**

 **Go ahead and read! It's gonna be *lit*! (Sorry, I had to.)**  
 **WHEEEEE!**

The next morning, Leia woke up to Luke persistently shaking her shoulder. The Princess blinked away the sleepiness in her eyes and wondered how she'd gotten back into bed. She didn't even remember going to sleep. But the shaking sure was annoying.

"Leia, wake up!" Luke demanded, finally yanking the blanket off the bed, exposing his sister to the chilly air of the Tatooine morning.

"I'm awake, I'm awake! Sheesh, _calm_ down." Leia stretched her arms above her head and yawned.

Luke watched, unimpressed. He said, "I just thought you should know something."

"It'd better be worth waking me up before the _sun_ has risen."

"It is, trust me."

"Okay, give it your best shot."

"Ben is reading your journal."

Leia sat up instantly and snapped to attention.

"Wait, really?" she asked, prepared to leap out of bed if it was true, and prepared to clobber Luke if it wasn't.

"Yep."

As soon as the word was out of Luke's mouth, Leia sprung to her feet and stumbled into the next room. Sure enough, "Ben" was sitting on a stool, leafing through the pages of Leia's most prized possession.

"Hey!" Leia yelled, lunging for the book. She snatched it out of Obi-Wan's hands and held it close to her chest.  
"Since when does everyone want to read my journal?!"

Obi-Wan sat there, as calm as ever, and replied, "I was just curious as to what you write _about._ I have to admit, it was wonderful to see you using your mother's journal."

Leia slowly drew her gaze to the journal in her arms. She remembered Ben mentioning "her mother's journal" when they had first met, back at Luke's home. Obi-Wan had never given a proper explanation to his statement.

"So. . .can you. . .tell me that story?" Leia asked cautiously. Obi-Wan smiled warmly and ducked his head in a nod.

"Of course. Your mother was a diplomat, and for a time, the Queen of Naboo. She, much like yourself, was most likely looking for an escape from everyday life. A confidant, perhaps. Then, she found that journal.

"There was hardly any time for her to write, but when she did, it was with passion. That journal was her pride and joy, and she treated it with extreme care. She wrote about anything and everything. Her feelings, her handmaidens, her position as Queen, your father, and eventually, her pregnancy with you two.

"I was surprised when I saw you with that book. At first, I wasn't sure if it was the same one. I told you it was your mother's because I trusted my instincts. Then, today, I saw the writing on the inside of the cover. That confirmed what I already thought to be true."

Leia frowned. "What writing inside the cover?"

Obi-Wan gestured to Leia's journal, signaling for her to see for herself.

The Princess cautiously opened the book to the first page. On the inside of the front cover, there was a small line of elaborate handwriting. Leia gaped.

"It says, 'Property of Padmé Amidala'. You don't mean to tell me you've never noticed it before?"

"B—But, I've _never_ noticed that! And I've had this journal for _years_!"

"Well, now you know, I suppose. It belonged to your mother. You should be proud."

"Of what?"

"Of your _self_. You managed to find this journal, write in it, take it along with you through your journey, and it's still intact. I'm impressed."

"Well. . .I guess that's pretty cool. But. . .if my mom used to write in it all the time, why wasnt there any of _her_ writing in it? Besides the cover, I mean."

"Hmm. To be completely honest, I'm not sure. She could have ripped the pages out before you two were born, or someone _else_ could have. As you can see, that journal used to have a great deal more pages than it does now."

"Wow. I bet my Father ripped them out."

"Which father?" Luke asked deviously, casting a sarcastic eye in Obi-Wan's direction.

"Um. . .Bail. I don't think I want to call him my _adoptive father_ , because it seems kind of impersonal, and he raised me and all. Just assume I mean Bail when I say 'father'."

Obi-Wan, who's eyes hadn't left the journal, spoke up again.

"Leia," he said, "what have you been writing about?"

Leia looked taken aback. "Wha—I'm not telling you! Didn't you already read it without my per _mission_?"

"Not quite. I read a few pages, yes, and I apologize if that was wrong of me. But I'm curious."

"Huh. Believe me, it's none of your business. It's just a lot of. . .conflicted teenage emotions and stuff. That's what my Mother says, anyway."

"Alright, suit yourself. Moving past that, what is your plan?"

Leia raised a confused eyebrow at the sudden subject change and said, "Plan? For what?"

"For what you'll be doing when you leave here."

"Oh. . .I hadn't thought of that. And, frankly, that's thinking pretty far ahead. I don't have a plan for—"

"No plan?" Luke sarcastically exclaimed, cutting Leia off. "Sounds familiar."

Leia crossed her arms and looked at the sandy floor. She didn't respond and stayed that way for a concerning amount of time.

Luke turned to Obi-Wan and frowned.

When Leia silently stood up and left the house through the small door, Luke moved to follow her. Before the young boy could get very far, Obi-Wan put a restraining hand on his shoulder.

"No, Luke. Let her take some time to herself. I sense she needs it."

Luke obviously didn't approve, but he obeyed, nonetheless.

Leia darted out of the minuscule home and into the hot outdoors. She wasn't quite sure why Luke's comment had affected her so much, but she _did_ know that she wanted to be alone. For a _long time_. Like, as long as possible.

Leia didn't remember falling asleep last night, but she remembered looking in the mirror. Her reflection. The tiara. The barrage of thoughts that ensued.

 _Wow. My life is way too complicated for a thirteen year old._

Leia kept moving away from Obi-Wan's dwelling place. When the house was finally far enough away for her liking, the Princess attempted to scout out somewhere to relax. To just clear her mind for a second.

The entire ground was a field of sand, and Leia sighed with a familiar feeling of exasperation. Her clothes were already worn and dusty, so it wouldn't matter if they got any dirtier. So, she settled on sitting down where she was and setting her journal in her lap.

For a while, Leia only stared at it. She didn't feel like writing (and her pen was back at Ben's house), and she didn't really enjoy staring at the cover. While Leia decided what to do with the book, the hot wind blew across the desert and tossed her curls around. Her hair blew into her eyes and distracted Leia from thinking, but she noticed she had nothing to tie her hair back with.

"Of course," Leia mumbled, brushing her hair back with her fingers. "On top of _everything else_ , my _hair_ is in my _eyes!_ " She let out a frustrated yell and gave the horizon a deadly glare, while simultaneously wondering why everything was making her so upset today.

Her gaze was directed back to her journal. It sat in her lap, intimidating her and annoying her at the same time. Leia picked up the brown book and eyed it with disdain.

 _Why do I suddenly feel so detached from this? It's_ ** _mine_** _! What's the matter with me?_

The small girl closed her eyes and searched her subconscious for an answer. After Obi-Wan had revealed the origins of her journal, Leia had felt somewhat strange. In fact, the feeling wasn't one she got often. Had she _ever_ had that feeling?

Leia felt _warm_. The warm sensation spreading through her body wasn't from the heat or the blinding sunlight. It wasn't a feeling of embarrassment or nervousness, which was _usually_ a warm-ish tingling.

It was something new, for sure.

Leia thought about it a bit longer, and a conclusion (more or less) eventually came to her. Her journal no longer felt like her own. There was a command of caution that weighed on Leia's mind, now. As if the book was someone _else's_ prized possession, and it was never hers to begin with. The Princess had the urge to handle the journal with even more care. But why?

 _Because it was my mother's._

And, as it turned out, that fact was very important to her.

Leia, with a rejected-sounding sigh, held the journal with both hands in front of her face.

"Well," she said, not caring that no one could hear her, "the fact that this was my mother's doesn't make a difference. This journal is _mine._ "

Feeling assured, the young girl twirled the book in her hands, tossed it in the air, and caught it again. She opened it to a random page and began reading aloud.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _My parents GROUNDED ME. Can you believe it?! It's absolutely unfair and totally insane. And guess why they grounded me! Go on, guess! Never mind, you can't guess. You're a journal._

 _Well, basically, I got in trouble for crashing a party. And I mean quite literally. What's that you say? You want the extended story? Alright then._

 _So. It was just last night when my Mother and Father hosted a gala for all of their Senatorial partners and. . .well, I don't know the correct terms yet. Anyway, I wasn't invited, obviously, because I'm only twelve years old. Apparently it was an "adults only" party. Typical._

 _I, being the curious person that I am, was really wondering what an adults-only-party was like._

 _My parents thought I was in bed, but I stayed awake in my room until exactly 11:00 PM._

 _When I was completely sure that everyone was downstairs, I slipped out of bed and swapped my pajamas for a tunic and leggings. Then, I ran down the stairs (but didn't make a sound because I'm stealthy when I want to be)._

 _I couldn't find all the people at first, but eventually I heard music and voices down the hall. Everyone was gathered in the Grand Ballroom, and gosh, it looked like so much fun._

 _I snuck into the room unnoticed, which was difficult due to the swarms of fancy people. Crawling under a table was also pretty hard, as was staying quiet, dodging fellow party-goers, and keeping an eye out for my parents._

 _I was doing really well for about an hour, and I even snuck some food under the table! I mean, my parents put me to bed every night at nine, but I never actually go to_ ** _sleep_** _until eleven. Midnight, at the latest. So, staying up late wasn't the problem._

 _The problem was this:_

 _After a while, I decided to crawl out and stretch. I was getting a decent view when I peeked out from under the tablecloth, but there was a PARTY going on! And I'm a princess! I had every right to be down there. (This is just preparation for what I'm about to tell you.)_

 _Basically, I scooted around on the floor until I was out in the open. Everybody was walking around, and a few people even saw me! They just smiled and moved on, as if my presence wasn't rattling at all! I took it to mean that I could walk around unnoticed, so I gave it a try._

 _It lasted for about thirty seconds._

 _Some sharply dressed man decided to walk right in front of me. I didn't see him, therefore I bumped right into the guy, he stumbled backwards and into three other people, and. . ._

 _I ricocheted off of him and directly into a table full of desserts and punch. I remember a really loud *crash* noise, and I remember everyone becoming suddenly silent. They all turned to find the source of the noise: ME._

 _Soon, my parents came running over. They were, uh. . .less than pleased._  
 _I won't elaborate on the matter much longer, but yes. I knocked the whole table over. Father would've laughed, but Mother elbowed him in the side. But I know he thought it was funny._

 _So, how did that lead to this? I'm just sitting in my room, as I have been for the past six hours! They bring food up here and everything! My parents will NOT let me leave my bedroom. And why?! I only wanted to see what a party was like! My parents throw parties all the time, and I'm never allowed. That's alright, though. One day, I'll be able to host parties and have adult people over. Because one day, I'll be Queen!_

 _But. . .being Queen would probably be really boring. My Mother just sits in her study and has meetings every day. Father does a lot of paperwork. I thought royalty was supposed to be fun! Hmm._

 _I guess I should just focus on how I'm gonna get out of here. Wait, hold on. You didn't actually think I was_ ** _staying_** _here, did you? Oh, no way! I have to make a run for it! They won't keep me in here for more than a day. I'll probably just get in trouble again. But that's okay. It's kind of my thing, haha. :)_

 _-Leia_

The young Princess had to laugh. It had been nearly two years since that entry was written. Leia still remembered the night of that party—the lights, the music, the people. Just the atmosphere of it was spectacular to witness. Leia wished she could be a part of that again.

That memory suddenly seemed very far away, which it was, technically. And, of course, Leia had gotten in trouble again that night so long ago. It turned into a sort of cycle with her. Her family learned to adjust accordingly.

Now, Princess Leia sat in the warm sand with her journal in her hands. The warmth started to penetrate the rough fabric of her pants, and she enjoyed it. Leia leaned backwards until she was lying down on her back, clutching her journal to her chest. Her eyes closed and the tiniest hint of a smile appeared on her dusty face.

A few moments later, Leia felt that someone. . .or something. . .was near. Instead of opening her eyes, she tried to imagine who it was. She pictured someone short. . .with. . .blond hair, and. . .blue eyes. . .

"Luke?" Leia said, opening her eyes.

"Huh?" Luke asked, looking down at her.

The Princess was stunned. Not only had she _felt_ someone's presence, but she had accurately guessed who it was! She felt strangely accomplished, considering her practice with this sort of thing was limited.

"Hey, are you okay?" Luke asked, sitting down. He eyed her suspiciously.

Leia drummed her fingers on the cover of her journal, searching the sky for an answer to Luke's question. Instead of coming up with a response to it, Leia closed her eyes again. Luke looked confused.

"Uh, Leia?" he said. "You okay? You can hear me, right?"

Leia kept her eyes closed.

"I want what you have, Luke."

The boy blinked back his surprise. "What. . .what _I_ have?" Luke asked. "What do I have that you don't?"

Leia's small smile turned back into a frown as she said, "Well, a lot of things. But there's one thing you have—that you've always had—that I really need."

"O—okay?"

"I want to make things right, Luke. I want things to be normal again."

"Oh. Normal? You know that things will never be _normal_ again."

"But I can try to make them that way. I have to. _We_ have to."

"So what is it you want?"

Leia paused. She opened her beautiful, brown eyes, that were clouded with the burden of emotional exhaustion.

"Peace," she stated, as if it were extremely obvious. Luke pretended that he understood, because he didn't want to make things worse.

"Ah. _Peace_. I see. I didn't know I had that."

Leia's gaze turned inward as she watched the horizon.

"But you do. You live carefree and happy, never worrying about anything. Your life is blissfully. . .simple. You're innocent. I'm the opposite, and I want the same peace you have."

"Okay, that's. . .understandable. How are you planning on getting it? Does it involve something. . .stupid?"

"Maybe."

"Stupid and. . .dangerous? Something that could potentially make things worse, but you're willing to try?"

"You know me too well."

Luke smiled and shook his head. Finally, he said, "I'm in."

 **A/N: Awwww, sibling love. Luke and Leia are cute, that's for sure. I've always wondered how they would've acted if they met as kids, so that's partially why this fanfic exists, hehe. Yo' welcome ;)**

 **What did ya think? Worth the wait? I hope so!**

 **What about Leia's "past diary entry"? I don't know how I feel about them, so I want advice. Do you like it when she rereads her journal? Wanna see more?**  
 **That's all I have to say about the chapter, but I do have another matter to address.**

 ***WARNING: IF YOU DON'T LIKE CLOWNS, STOP READING***  
 **So. Where I live (Iowa), there are tons and tons of stories about clowns. Apparently, some maniacs dressed as clowns are going around kidnapping kids and hurting people. A couple schools already went on lockdown because of threats. Do you guys know anything about this? It's pretty freaky! And since my NUMBER ONE FEAR is clowns, this news hasn't exactly helped my life. It's creepy, y'all. If you've heard something about that, let me know. I wanna hear what you guys know.**

 **Okay, that's all for now. I hope you guys have a great week, and YEP this chapter was early. So. . .SUH-PRIIIISE!**  
 **Okay byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	34. Chapter 34: Let's Go

**A/N: Hello! Guess who's back! ME, obviously. And boy does it feel good! I know I skipped a weekend (AGAIN), and I apologize. And I apologize. And I apologize AGAIN. Hopefully nobody was just desperately waiting for this chapter, but if you were, you're in luck!**

 **High school is wild, you know? The people are weird, the teachers are weird. . .even the HOMEWORK is weird. Maybe I'm just bias because I was homeschooled. Who knows, really?**

 **I'll save all my relentless chit chat for the Author's Note at the end. READ AND ENJOY, and I'll see ya at the bottom.**

 **As always, WHEEEEEE! (Why do I do that.)**

After agreeing on a plan of action (not a reasonable one, mind you), the twins began the short trek back to Obi-Wan's house. But they weren't in a hurry, which gave Luke some time to ask his sister a question.

"So, Leia," Luke started, glancing sideways at her. "Can I ask you something?"

Leia raised her eyebrows in mild surprise.

"Um. . .sure. Go ahead."

"Okay, so. . .have you been writing in your journal lately?" Luke gestured to the book Leia was holding firmly under one arm. The Princess turned away.

"Not really," she admitted, suddenly very interested in the sand beneath her feet. "It's been a while."

Luke was confused. That journal was pretty much Leia's one true love. Since when was she _not_ writing in it? It puzzled him. He decided to probe a little further, but he'd have to be careful of his wording.

"Why?" Luke asked. He noticed Leia frown as she watched the ground.

"I. . .don't know," she lied, still not making eye contact with her brother.

Luke nudged her shoulder. "That doesn't sound like you," he said. "If you've stopped writing for now, you know _exactly_ why."

"What makes you so sure?"

"Everything! You're just so _confident_ and _sure_ of yourself. You must have a reason. You've been acting so weird today."

"Why the sudden interest in this? Are you trying to prove a point?"

The twins had stopped walking and were standing in place, facing one another. Luke shook his head rapidly.

"No, I just want to know! Is there something wrong?"

" _No_ , there's nothing wrong."

"Then why aren't you writing?"

"Why do you _care_?!"

The siblings' voices were slowly escalating to a loud argument, which had never been in Luke's intentions.

"I care because. . .because you aren't acting right! It's not just the fact that you're completely ignoring your journal, but you're acting different! You're usually so happy, and lately—"

"What? Lately _what_?"

"You're just. . .I'm just. . ."

"You're just _what?_ "

Luke threw his hands in the air in defeat as Leia watched him with an angry expression of expectancy.

"I'm just _worried_!" Luke exclaimed, gesturing wildly as he attempted to reign in the argument.

"About _what_?" Leia's tone was sarcastic.

"ABOUT _YOU_!" he yelled.

The twins both froze where they stood. Leia's arms, which were formerly crossed tightly over her chest, fell to her sides limply. Luke stood still, breathing heavily after their heated discussion. Both siblings looked anywhere but at each other. The desert suddenly felt very small, despite the vast expanse of blowing sand. Leia forced herself to comprehend this new information.

"You're. . .you're what?" she asked, making sure she heard correctly.

"I'm _worried_ about you," Luke responded, exasperated. The Princess shook her head as if to clear it.

"Oh, uh, well. . .I'm not sure how to respond to that. . .so I'm just gonna. . .keep walking," Leia said. She began moving towards Obi-Wan's house at a brisk pace. Luke ran to catch up with her.

"Hey, wait! You never answered my question!" he called. Leia paused and waited for her brother to catch up. When they were at a matched pace once again, Leia spoke up.

"Luke, you already know my life is a mess right now. I don't _want_ to write in my journal until I have my life sorted out. Plus, it feels weird now that I know. . .that it was Mom's."

"Oh. I thought you said writing helps you think clearly, though."

"Yeah, I did. But I don't wanna waste my time writing about stuff that isn't necessary. I'll pick up writing again. . .eventually. But first I need to fix things."

"How?"

"That's what we're about to find out."

Leia and Luke were rapidly approaching Ben's home. They stopped at the door and Leia said, "Let me do the talking. Do you trust me?"

"Uh. . .not really."  
"Ha ha. But seriously. You need to let me to the explaining."

"Right. When has _that_ ever gone wrong?" Luke asked with a tone of intense sarcasm. Leia rolled her brown eyes good-naturedly and stepped into the house.

Obi-Wan was sitting where they had left him, but his eyes were closed. At first, the twins got the impression that he was asleep, but he suddenly opened his eyes and frowned.

"Um, Ben, Sir?" Leia started, slightly unsure of what to say. "We. . .we have a plan now. We're gonna have to be on our way."

Kenobi shifted his gaze from Leia to Luke. Then from Luke back to Leia. The twins squirmed.

"I know," the retired Jedi finally stated. "I know where you are going. And I'm not going to stop you, but I am going to _warn_ you. What you're about to do is extremely dangerous. Keep each other safe. Please."

The twins glanced nervously at one another. Luke had no idea what was happening, because Leia had never really told him her plan. Now, though, he decided it probably wasn't going to be a walk in the park. Leia's plans never were.

"Okay," Leia said, uneasy. When the room took on an atmosphere of uncomfortable silence, she continued.

"Hey, uh. . .thanks. You know, for all your help."

Obi-Wan smiled and nodded. "Anything for a Skywalker," he said.

Leia spotted her satchel and threw it over her shoulder. Luke headed out the door, but Leia lingered a moment longer. There was something she needed to ask first. Now or never.

"Ben?" she asked.

"Yes, young one?"

"What if this plan doesn't work?"

"Trust in the Force, Leia. It will guide you in whatever you do. You're a brave girl, child. Very brave. And for that, I commend you."

Leia gave a small smile in return. "So. . .will we ever see you again? I mean. . .I may not be coming back to Tatooine," she said, the smile fading. Who knew where her plan might take her?

"Oh, I'll always be around. Maybe stop by and visit again sometime, if you ever get the chance."

"Sure thing," Leia laughed. Before she stepped out the door, Leia hesitated once more.

"Ben?" she asked.

"Yes?"

"Do you really know what I'm planning to do?"

"Yes, I do. And that is why I warned you. Whatever you are trying to accomplish. . .it won't change anything."

"How do you know?"

"Leia, I am too old now. I have seen it all. War. Death. Murder. Some things never change."

Leia's hopeful expression became downcast, then quickly changed to one of determination. She was going to carry on anyway.

"Then that's one more reason to try," she finalized. Before leaving for what could possibly be the last time, the young girl rushed into a quick hug with the old man. Obi-Wan was rigid for a moment, but he eventually relaxed and embraced her as well.

With that, Leia smiled one last time at him and turned around. Luke was waiting patiently for her outside.

"You ready?" he asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"So, you _do_ have a plan, right?"

"Yeah."

"Is it a. . . _good_ plan?"

"It's. . .a plan."

"Okay, good enough."

The twins shared a nervous smile and started off towards the heart of Leia's idea.

Not ten minutes into their walk, Luke's curiosity couldn't be contained any longer.

"Okay, what exactly are we doing? And where exactly are we _going_?" he asked, turning his head to look at his sister.

"We'll get there when we get there. Not a second sooner," Leia responded, unwilling to reveal anything regarding her scheme. Luke, however, was growing increasingly impatient.

"I didn't ask when we'd get there! What are we _doing_?"

"Well, I don't have all the details planned out yet, because it's all kind of complicated. But, guaranteed, when it's done, we'll both be a lot happier."

"How long have you been thinking all of that through?"

"A _long time_. Like, really long."

"Are you gonna tell me what the plan actually _is_?"

"It has multiple steps. I really don't want to tell you."

"Uh, why not? I have a right to know—you're the one dragging me into it."

"Some of the steps are kind of. . .risky. You might back out if I tell you."

"Take your chances."

"Okay, so, step one is a surprise, step two is to figure out if Vader is on Tatooine, step three is to find how Vader got here, if he's even here, step four is to. . .find Vader's ship, step five is to get on _board_ Vader's ship, step six is to find Darth Vader and confront him about this whole problem. Then, step seven is to walk away alive. I mean. . .steps one through six seem pretty simple, but the seventh step is the one I'm worried about. What do you think?"

Luke's jaw had been slowing dropping since the mention of step two. Now, he appeared to be stuck in a state of disbelief. And Leia's tone had been so _casual_!

"Luke? Luke," Leia said, snapping her fingers in front of her brother's face.

"Are you _insane?_ " Luke exclaimed, running a hand through his dusty, blonde hair.

"Dunno," Leia responded, nonchalantly. "I'll keep you posted, though."

"Leia, this is _serious_. You want to find _Darth Vader_. That in itself is gonna get you killed! There's no _way_ you'll be able to _talk_ to him! Never!"

"Never say never."

"Everything about your plan says, 'recipe for disaster'! You can't just waltz up to Vader and ask him why he's after you! That's—that's suicide!"

"Luke. . .I need to know why he wants me. It's because I can use the Force. And I had this dream. . ." Leia sighed. "Pretending it didn't happen isn't going to fix it. Finding him will. Please, Luke? For me?"

Luke's eyes were turned towards the sky, which was slowly being tinted red by the setting Suns. The fiery tones gave the setting a warm, comfortable feeling, which may have influenced what Luke said next. He closed his eyes, took two deep breaths, and fixed his gaze on Leia again.

"That is a terrible, horrible, incredibly foolish idea," he said. When Leia gave him a pleading look, Luke finished with, "So let's try it and see what happens."

Leia's face broke out into a grin.

"Really?" she said, assuring herself that he wasn't kidding. Luke was actually agreeing with her?

"Really," Luke answered, matching her smile. "But we're not going on a suicide mission until we at least take a nap. Agreed?"

Leia laughed. "Agreed."

The twins went a little farther into the desert before scouting out a place to sleep. The Suns glowed a brilliant shade of orange and were almost completely under the horizon. It would be dark soon.

"I can't believe you're _actually_ going along with my idea," Leia said, sitting down. "I thought you'd freak out and talk me out of it."

"Well, it's not ideal. And I don't know why you want to do this. But. . .you're my sister, and twins should probably stick together. There's no way I'm letting you do this by yourself."

"Thanks. I'm glad you're not the type to ditch people."

"No problem. And. . .you realize that this is gonna be dangerous, right?"

"Yeah, _and_ it'll be difficult. But fear is just another reason to try harder."

"I still think you're insane."

"Thanks. It must run in the family."

Not fifteen minutes later, Leia was fast asleep. Despite the fact that the Suns had only set moments earlier, the events of the day had caught up to both Luke and Leia. Now, Luke was curled up in the sand for what seemed like the thousandth time that week. When his eyes accidentally glanced at Leia's leather bag, Luke remembered when he had written in Leia's diary. It felt good to let his feelings out on paper.

It was freeing. Leia had every right to enjoy it. She hadn't seemed very mad when she caught him writing in the journal the first time. . .but would she be as forgiving the second time?  
There was only one way to find out.

Luke reached out his hand and grabbed the strap of the bag. He pulled it towards him and sat up. The next thing Luke did was fish out the glowrod, then he used the dim light to find Leia's journal and pen. As Luke's fingers touched the journal, he instinctively drew them away, excepting Leia to wake up again. This time, however, his twin stayed unmoving. He took that as a good sign.

 **Diary of Leia Organa:**  
 **Luke Edition!**

 _I definitely didn't expect to be writing here again, but life is funny that way. Leia is asleep next to me, and she hasn't shown any signs of objection to my writing, so I'll assume it means I'm in the clear. But that doesn't mean I won't keep an eye on her. She won't sneak up on me like last time._

 _We were at Ben Kenobi's home, but Leia suddenly concocted some "brilliant" plan, so we decided to head off on our own again. Ben was pretty helpful. He gave us a ton of backstory on our parents and stuff. I just wish our real mom and dad were still around. I wonder if they'd be proud of us. Parents aren't usually proud of children who embark on suicide missions, yet that's exactly what Leia and I are doing. Why, you ask? It was Leia's idea, not mine. That's an important fact._

 _She's bound and determined to not only find Darth Vader's ship, but to board it and_ ** _ride_** _in it. Then she wants to talk to him! I don't even know why, which is what I wanted to write about._  
 _Things are already so complicated, but they got even worse when Leia had that little Toolbox Incident. I'm sure she told you what it is, but she basically used the Force to reach Han's toolbox and it went flying into her and made a really big mess._

 _Leia hadn't used the power on_ ** _purpose_** _, but it somehow made its way to Darth Vader's knowledge, and now he's after her. Why? Is he afraid of what she can do? Does he want to_ ** _know_** _what she can do? Does he think she's a threat? A possible ally? Trainee material? I have no clue! Leia seems really terrified about the whole thing. Not that I blame her. If the most dangerous, evil man in the Galaxy was after me, I'd be terrified too._

 _But she somehow thinks that_ ** _talking_** _to him will smooth matters over! I tried to tell her that it won't work, but she refuses to listen. Like I said: she's determined. And when Leia's determined, it's not a good idea to make her mad. I speak from personal experience._

 _Step one of Leia's plan is a surprise, according to what she said earlier. I hope it's something mentally and physically relaxing, because I have a feeling that the next few days are gonna be more than stressful._

 _Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. Ben told us more about our power. We know it had a name. It's called the "Force", and it's some sort of energy field that can be used to the benefit of people. The few people that can manipulate this energy are called "Force-sensitives", which is simple enough._

 _We were given a brief overview of a really rough war, and Ben even told Leia and I about the Jedi massacre. I was really shocked by it, but Leia seemed kind of neutral. Almost as if she'd heard it before. I'm sure it was part of her Alderaanian upbringing._

 _You know. . .I'm really worried about Leia. Ever since the Toolbox Incident, she's been acting differently. She seems so distant and. . .almost detached from reality sometimes. I'm hoping that her "plan" will somehow succeed and make her normal again._  
 _If for some reason it_ ** _does_** _succeed, she'll have my eternal respect. Key word "IF"._

 _-Luke_

 **A/N: Well, what do we have here? Journal Luke has returned! Do you all like it when Luke journals? Who thinks he should get his own so he doesn't have to write in Leia's? :p**

 **So. Leia and Luke are about to do something that is one of two things: incredibly STUPID, or incredibly NECESSARY. And that's actually a lie because it's BOTH! But Leia is stuck on "KICK BUTT DETERMINATION" mode, so Luke won't be contradicting her anytime soon. Does he disagree with her logic? Yep. Is he doing her seven step plan anyway? HECK YEAH. Cover your eyes folks, because the twins are about to make or break their lives 0_O**

 **And is anyone else terrified of clowns? Anyone? Because Halloween is just around the corner, and since clowns are the big thing right now, I have this feeling that everyone is gonna dress up as clowns for fun on Halloween. And then I'll be chillin' at home and I'll see a clown walking down the street, and I'll scream and dial 911. Then the clown will turn out to be some teenager who thought it would be funny to freak people out, ya know? Is that anyone else's fear? Do I just have problems? XD**

 **Alright, well, it's 12:46 AM here. . .so I think it's time to hit the hay, no? I'll see you lovely people of the Internet in another week (or potentially two), and until then, keep being the wonderful supportive unicorn sparkles that you are!**  
 **BYEEEEEE!**

 **-Lia :)**


	35. Chapter 35: Never Say Never

**A/N: Why, hello! We meet again! This chapter was a fun one to write, and we may even see Han in it. *wink wink***

 **My mom took my brother and two of our cousins hiking, and I was still asleep. . .so I'm just gonna upload this right now! Haha, the life of a teenager, am I right? XD**  
 **Enough dilly dallying. Go ahead and read the chapter! See ya at the bottom!**

 **WHEEEEEEE! (I'm lame.)**

Leia woke up the next day before Luke. She squinted at the horizon and noticed that the twin Suns were not yet risen. The only sign of light was a thin, glowing orange line just above the most distant sand dune.

Leia smiled. She had wanted a head start on her plan, so the dim, early morning was perfect. Now she only had to wake up her brother.

Leia crawled over to Luke and nudged his shoulder with her foot. He grunted but stayed immobile. The Princess stood to her feet and sighed. She swung her foot back and landed a swift kick on Luke's arm. He groaned. Leia kicked him three more times, not as hard, but still firmly. When he still remained curled up on the ground, Leia kicked him one more time.

"OKAY!" Luke yelled, jumping to his feet. "What was _that_ for?!"

"Well, if you'd woken up properly the first time I kicked you, I wouldn't have had to do it four more times!"

"What's the matter? Explain yourself, or there'll be consequences."

"We're gonna learn how to use the Force!"

Luke gawked at his sister who was happily bouncing up and down on her heels.

"The Suns aren't even up, and you want me to do _what_ now?" he asked, sinking back to the ground. Leia grabbed his arm and pulled him up again.

"Use the Force! Ben said we have the power, and if we'd have had training, we'd be able to use it better. Well, there's no time like the present!"

"Leia, no way. You're lucky I'm even going along with your disaster of a plan. I'm not gonna learn how to harness some mystic energy field in one day! It's impossible!"

"Nothing is impossible except impossibility, as my Father says. And we'll never know until we try it."

"Leia, that makes _no sense,_ " Luke scolded, still blearily blinking his tired eyes.

"I'm under no obligation to make sense to you. I'm the older twin, and I say we do it."

"You're not older. I'm older."

"Says who?"

"Says _me_ because I'm older than you!"

"You don't know that, though. I could be, like, a whole ten minutes older or something."

"Or the other way around. You could be ten minutes _younger_ , you know."

"Alright, whatever! Remind me to _ask_ someone about that. But we have more important things to worry about right now, like figuring out how to use the Force. Well, use it _better_ , anyway."

"What if it's hard?"

"What if it's _easy_?"

Luke, obviously unwilling to admit to being defeated, glared at Leia. She smirked, for she knew she had won.  
With an extra groan for good measure, Luke sat down and mumbled, "Fine. Let's try this."

"Yes!" Leia cried victoriously. She hurriedly situated herself next to Luke in the sand and moved so they were facing each other.

"So. . .what do we do now?" Luke asked.

"Well," Leia started, glancing around, "I've never seen a Jedi in action before, but I've seen one sitting down once. They do this thing where they sit down, cross their legs, and close their eyes."

"When have you seen a _Jedi_?"

"Our palace gardener was actually a Jedi once. I've seen him do that thing a few times."

"What's it called?"

"The sitting and closing their eyes? I think it's called meditating."

"How do you do it?"

"We can start by copying their position."

Which is exactly what the twins did. Leia crossed her legs in a sitting position and watched Luke do the same. His occasional glances her way were unsure, but he seemed mildly interested, if not a little awkward.

"Okay. . .now we have to. . .close our eyes?" Leia said, attempting to recall any information about the subject.

"What for?" asked Luke.

"I'm not sure. They do it to focus, I guess."

"Focus on what?"

"I don't know, okay? On _something_ , obviously. Why don't we just try it?"

Luke sighed. "Okay."

Both Luke and Leia closed their eyes and tried to focus. Of course, they weren't entirely sure what they were focusing _on,_ which did turn out to be a small problem. After a few minutes of strained silence, Luke opened his eyes.

"Okay, nothing's happening. It didn't work."

Leia, who was still trying to make something happen, opened one eye and peered at her brother.

"It might take time, Luke. Be patient."

"How do you know?"

"I _don't._ But. . .you know what? Never mind. Lemme access a real source."

Leia uncrossed her legs and reached for her bag. She fished through it until she found her datapad, which had been relatively unused since she had been on her way to Tatooine.

After a triumphant noise, Leia turned the device on and paused, startled.

"Why did you stop?" Luke asked, glancing down at the datapad.

"Because I have to be careful."

"Why?"

"If I just _use_ the HoloNet, someone could track the files and information that I accessed, and that could lead to them finding out who owns this datapad, my information, and where I am right now."

"So, you own it, right?"

"Um, _duh!_ I have to find a secure network within the HoloNet to access. I don't want to take any risks."

"Who could track that information?"

"My parents, the palace staff, the _Empire_ , and pretty much anyone who knows how to access a search history. If I access the HoloNet, I'll have to cover my tracks."

"Okay, so how do you do that?"

"I don't really know. I don't know a lot about technology and stuff. I'll just have to figure it out as I go."

Leia tapped away at her datapad, finally smiling at something on the screen.

Luke looked over her shoulder, trying to be patient.

"Luke, I think I found a secure network! I'm not one hundred percent sure, but it seems pretty tight. You'd have to be a skilled hacker to access someone's personal information."

Luke understood next to nothing about technology and the workings thereof, so he only nodded. Leia continued.

"Now. . .if I just click this. . .it should block anyone from finding my search history—and this turns off the location setting—and we're good! It's as secure as it's going to get."

"So, does that mean you can search things now?"

"Yep."

The first thing Leia typed into the search bar was "Jedi". It seemed simple enough.

The system loaded and a list of sites appeared.

 **Jedi—The Protecters of the Galaxy.**

 **What happened to the Jedi?**

 **Order 66 and the Story Behind It.**

 **Jedi and Their Customs.**

 **What did the Jedi do?**

 **Who were the Jedi?**

And the list went on and on. Leia eyed the options and selected the one titled, "What did the Jedi do?".

The site opened to reveal a picture of a young man with auburn (almost orange) hair. He was standing in what looked like an alert battle stance, and in his hands was a lightsaber that glowed a brilliant blue. His tan robes made him look professional and mature.

Under the picture, there were several articles that each contained a different aspect of a Jedi's life—from training as a Padawan to building their own lightsaber. Luke and Leia exchanged excited glances.

Leia skipped over some articles in order to find the one that would be relevant to their situation.  
One article seemed helpful. It read:

 **Jedi and the Force**

 _The Force, an energy field that the Jedi can bend and manipulate [see Article 8] can be used in many ways. The Jedi have several forms of using the Force: Meditation, Levitation, Mind-Reading, Lightsaber Battle, Physical Combat, and Enhanced Physical Ability._

 _The first of the list, Meditation, can be achieved by a series of steps that often require total concentration and complete focus._

 _During Meditation, the Jedi enter a mental state of calm and are unaware of the events unfolding around them. A skilled Jedi can even go so far as to stop their own heartbeat, sustaining life through the Force itself._  
 _To achieve Meditation, the Jedi—skilled and unskilled alike—must reach their innermost self by focusing intensely on one sole purpose: obtaining total peace by finding the very center (i.e. core) of their soul._

 _Through this practice, Jedi are able to supposedly connect with themselves and each other on a deeper level and often solve problems and gain wisdom. . ._

The article continued to describe what could be gained through meditating, but Leia had already heard what she'd needed to hear.

"See?" she shouted. "It's perfect! This tells us _exactly_ what to do and _how_ to do it! There was never anything more destined than this, Luke. We _have_ to keep trying. We _have_ to."

Luke grimaced. He kept his eyes locked on the datapad, but the gears in his head were turning. There was no doubt about it; Leia had a point. The benefits from meditating seemed promising. . .and they _were_ trying to solve a problem. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad? And, after all, it was for Leia.

With a defeated sigh, Luke met his sister's eyes and said, "Okay. Let's do it."

Leia reeled Luke into a crushing hug.  
"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" she said, the words leaping out of her mouth in a rush. "You _won't_ regret this. I promise."

"Don't make promises you can't keep," Luke said, smiling slightly. Leia only laughed.

 **~•~**

Han, for the umpteenth time, was dragging his feet through the desert of Tatooine. Needless to say, he was _not_ happy. At all.

Chewbacca was walking with him, but the Wookiee stayed a safe distance behind his pilot friend. Han was in a potentially explosive mood, and it would be best to let him cool off.

After Han had woken up in the middle of nowhere, anyone within a six mile radius heard his scream of frustration. Then, he'd collected himself, told Chewie to follow him, and started off into the desert once again. Because it was starting to feel like a regular thing.

How many times had the twins run off now? Three times? Four? Han decided it didn't really matter.

He was almost sixteen and they were going on fourteen, yet he felt so much older than them. Han knew he'd seen much more than them, dealt with much more. Luke was as innocent as a baby Nexu and Leia wasn't very far behind. But they still managed to surpass Han in a certain level of maturity. Perhaps it wasn't a regular form of maturity. Maybe it was something he would never find out.

"How can someone be immature and completely _not_ mature at the same time?" Han mumbled. "It doesn't make sense."

Chewbacca risked a comment from behind Han's back.

"I _know_ nothing makes sense anymore," Han responded. "But it'd be nice to have a little light shed on the situation."

A few minutes later, Han and Chewie started to see a faint shape on the horizon. As they walked towards it, the shape grew until it was not just a shape; it was a house.

At first glance, the home seemed like a large pile of jagged rocks. Upon further inspection, however, Han discovered there was in fact a door and even a small window (if you looked closely).

"Whaddya say, Chewie?" Han inquired. "Is it worth it?"

Chewbacca cocked his head to one side and growled.

Han shrugged. "Might as well try."

The doorway had no actual _door_ , so Han cautiously stepped halfway into the structure and glanced around. There didn't appear to be any—

"Welcome!" said a voice. Han jumped at the sound.

"Who's there?" the pilot called into the darkness, not really expecting a response.

"Oh, I believe we've met before," the voice explained. "You are the infamous Han Solo, correct?"

Han narrowed his eyes and replied, "Look, I don't know _who_ you are or why you think we've met. But you better show yourself!"

"Of course, of course. No need to yell."

A cloaked figure emerged from the shadows, revealing an old man with a white beard and kind eyes. Han gasped.

"Hey, I remember you!" he said. "You're that one mysterious guy! What's your name. . .Kenobi?"

"That's right."

Suddenly, the room seemed much brighter, and Ben said, "I sense you're looking for someone to shed some _light_ on a certain situation."

 **~•~**

"Okay," Leia was saying, her legs still folded in a meditation position. "Luke and Leia Attempt Meditation: Take Nine."

Luke was growing steadily more and more impatient. His sister was trying her best to both learn and teach the Jedi practice, and so far it wasn't very successful. The only thing they'd accomplished was unnatural exhaustion. Luke almost fell back asleep."

By that point, the Suns were slightly higher in the brightening sky. Soon it would be midday, and the twins were nowhere near meeting their goal. Leia decided it was time to get serious.

"Alright. No more kidding around. We're gonna _do_ this and we're gonna do it _right_!" she said, slamming a fist into the sand. Luke leaned back on his hands.

"Sure, Leia. Not that your. . . _optimism_ isn't encouraging, but this isn't gonna happen. Meditation is for Jedi. We're _not_ Jedi."

"But it's in our blood! We're Force-sensitive! We were _born_ able to do it. It just might take time."

"Yeah, a _long_ time. We should just go back to sleep." His eyelids lowered slightly at the thought.

"Luke, it's a little late for that."

"If it'll get me outta following this plan of yours. . ." Luke trailed off and leaned backwards until he was lying on his back. Leia frowned.

She had to grasp his attention. . .but how?

Suddenly, the Princess got an idea. She picked up her satchel, spilled its contents on the ground, and grabbed her journal.

"This!" she exclaimed, throwing the book at Luke. It landed heavily on his stomach. He groaned.

"What? Your journal? If you think I'm gonna write about my feelings or something, you're wrong."

"No! We can use it to meditate! You've heard of Jedi moving things with their minds, right?"

Luke looked suspicious. "Yeah. . .why?"

"If we want to master Meditation, we need to find one thing to focus on. We can focus on my _journal._ That way, we'll be meditating and might even move something with the Force!"

"I don't follow your logic."

"Okay, look at this."

Leia held up her datapad, which was displaying another paragraph.

 **Levitation**

 _In addition to Meditation, Levitation is a way that Jedi use the Force._  
 _Levitation is defined as causing an object to float or hover off of the ground. Jedi often use Levitation to reach faraway objects, call their lightsaber to their hand, or push objects away. The act of pushing an object (using the Force) is commenly referred to as a Force-push._

 _In order to properly levitate an object, note that a Jedi must be intently focusing on that object. A simple way to focus is to picture, in your mind, the object doing what you want it to do._  
 _Never strain yourself while attempting Levitation. One must be mentally calm and immovably confident. Jedi never doubt their power._

Leia smirked as Luke read the article. He was seeming a little more convinced than earlier. Good—she only needed him to at least partially agree.

Luke looked up from his reading.  
"Are you. . .are you sure this'll work?" he inquired.

"Yep."

"One hundred percent positive?"

"One hundred and _ten_ percent positive."

"Oh, well in _that_ case."

Once again, Luke reluctantly gave in to Leia's pleading stare.

The first thing Leia did was order Luke to sit in the Meditation position. Then, she instructed him to focus only on the journal (which was sitting in the middle of Luke and Leia, who were sitting across from each other).

Leia wasn't sure what her brother was doing, but she was going to try and try until she succeeded. After all, it was in their blood.

Leia closed her eyes; she tried to picture the journal in her mind, which was remarkably easy. There it was! It was brown. . .it was small. . .and it was sitting on the ground. Her eyes still closed, the Princess imagined the journal lifting slowly off the ground. She was focused on nothing else. In her mental image, the journal obeyed. But did she dare check on the real life journal?

Yes, she did dare.

Leia opened both eyes and gasped. There, not a foot in front of her, the journal was floating at least six inches off the ground! Leia moved backwards, stunned. When she broke her concentration, the leather-bound book plopped back down on to the sand. Luke had seen the whole thing.

"I told you so!" Leia said, still shaken from the feeling.

Luke retorted, "Yeah, yeah, you told me so. But can you teach _me_ how to do that?"

 **A/N: Didja like it?**

 **I thought I'd try something a little different for this chapter. Sooooo I had Luke and Leia try meditation and levitation (which was actually a step in her plan). Normally, I think Luke would be the eager one and Leia would be the pessimist, but I reversed the roles a lil' bit!**

 **So yeah! Han meets up with Kenobi again! Next chapter will most likely be a story time, haha ;)**

 **WELP, I hope you liked it, and if you did, feel free to review ^_^**  
 **Okay, byeeeeee!**

 **-Lia :)**


	36. Chapter 36: Wouldja Look At That

**A/N: WHOA hi there fellas! It's been a while since I've uploaded a chapter. . .three weeks?! Yikes. I'm super duper sorry for that unintentional hiatus. Life is busy and all that stuff.**

 **However, NEVER FEAR 'cause I'm back with a new chapter! Some fun stuff happens here and Han even reunites with our fave twins! Han, Luke and Leia. . .yeah, it's bound to be a good time.**

 **Alsoooo. . .HAPPY LATE THANKSGIVING if you live in America/if you celebrate it! Hope you had fun with your family and ate ALL THE FOOD XD**

 **On with the chapter since I know y'all are DYING to read it. JK I don't think anyone is that excited hehe. Let's go!**

 **WHEEEEE!**

Han Solo sat begrudgingly on a solid rock chair in Ben Kenobi's home. The young pilot tapped his foot with impatience. Kenobi had disappeared into an adjoining room with the promise of returning shortly. So far, it was turning out to be an empty promise.

Several minutes later, when Han and Chewie had resorted to moving their toes individually for entertainment, Obi-Wan emerged from a nearby doorway. Han looked up expectantly.

"I suppose you are looking for the twins, correct?" Obi-Wan asked, sitting down in another chair.

"Yeah. . .why? You know where they went?"

"Oh, yes. They were here not long ago."

"They were _here_? What for?"

"Luke and Leia were here for the same reason you are. They wanted answers."

"Okay. . .answers about what?"

"About their past. That sort of thing."

"I see. What about me? What can you tell me?"

"Well," Kenobi said, sighing, "they were here for one night, then headed off the next day to who knows where."

Han eyed the old man with suspicion.  
"Why don't I believe that?" Han asked, sporting a sarcastic half-grin.

"I'm not sure. What does your instinct tell you?"

"I don't know. Something tells me you know _exactly_ where they went."

Obi-Wan raised his eyebrows. He debated what to tell Han, if anything.

"Well?" Han pressed.

"You're quite right. I _do_ know where the twins have gone. However, it is not my duty or place to _tell_ you."

"What?! Why not?"

"I wasn't instructed to give away any information. This is something they must do on their own."

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! If it's even _remotely_ dangerous, they can't do it alone."

"It is my impression that they are quite capable."

"What are they _doing_? Tell me. Now."

Obi-Wan looked thoughtful.  
Deep down, he knew it would be beneficial to tell Han what the twins were up to. If something were to happen to them, Han would be able to handle it. Then again, he was reckless. He might rush into unnecessary danger and get the whole group in trouble.

Could he be trusted? Kenobi loved the twins. They were the galaxy's last hope, after all! If something— _anything—_ happened to them, Obi-Wan didn't know what he'd do. And he had been okay with sending them into all that danger? Into the very heart of the Empire? The heart of _evil_? To find. . .

"Darth Vader," Obi-Wan whispered, a distant look in his eyes. Han tilted his head.

"Excuse me, _what_?"

"Darth Vader," Kenobi repeated.

"Okay, Darth Vader? What's that supposed to mean? The twins didn't go to Darth Vader."

Obi-Wan gave the younger man a knowing look.

"Unless. . .unless they _did_ ," Han said. He ran a hand through his messy, brown hair. He was going to puke.

"They did," Obi-Wan confirmed. "That is where they went. To find Vader."

"Why in the _galaxy_ would they wanna do _that_?!"

"Well, I'm sure the girl has her reasons. I don't question her motives, though I know they are pure."

"Who? _Leia_? It was _her_ idea? I don't think so, pal. She'd never do something so stupid. Not in a million years."

"Oh, wouldn't she? She didn't seem to think it was impossible."

"Of _course_ she didn't! She's a _kid_!"

"Are you aware of your _own_ age?" Obi-Wan asked smugly. "You're not very far ahead of the twins."

Han stuttered. "Well—well, I'd never do something like _this._ What exactly does she _want_ from Vader?"

"Goodness only knows what she wants. But. . .I think it is about what she _needs._ "

"Huh?"

"Leia is looking for answers, young Solo. I do not advise asking more questions; your time here is limited. You know what you have to do."

"I do?"

"Find them, Han. They need a friend now more than ever. You can help them, no doubt."

Han's face turned pale. "Y-you. . .you want me to do _what_?"

"Find the twins. They need you."

"I'm not going off to see _Darth Vader!_ Not a chance! I might make some stupid decisions now and then, but this. . .this is too much. Not even _I_ would do it. Never."

"Really? Well, then, I suppose you'll be pleased to know that Leia is sacrificing everything to find Vader. And I can guarantee that something horrible _will happen_ if you don't find them."

"Is that a threat?"

"No, my friend, it is a promise. They _need_ you. Go to them."

Han hesitatated.

"Okay," he finally said. "Sure. What if. . .what if I decided to go ahead and look for them. Where would they _be_?"

"Well, it is hard to say. They left here yesterday, and I cannot guarantee their exact location. They are not too far away."

"That's a liiiiiitle vague, don't you think?"

"I apologize, but it's the truth. I am usually able to pinpoint exactly where they are, but they seem. . .different, somehow."

"What? How different?"

"The twins are always thinking, and their thoughts normally fill their minds, which is how I find them. Today, however, they must be incredibly. . .focused," Obi-Wan smiled.

"Focused on what?"

The old man only grinned wider. "I cannot say for sure. But be prepared for a surprise when you find them, for there are many things you do not know. . .and many things that will stay secret."

Han raised an eyebrow as he stood to his feet. Chewie followed suit.

"You're obnoxiously cryptic, old man," Han mumbled, slipping out the door.

Kenobi chuckled, "I try."

 **~•~**

Leia watched with anticipation as her brother sat with his eyes squeezed shut. He had never been this focused in his entire life, she knew.

"I can't do it!" Luke said, straining to lift the journal with his mind.

"Yes you can, Luke! You can do it. I _know_ you can. Keep trying. You can't strain yourself—just relax and concentrate."

The blonde boy frowned deeper for a moment. Then, as if by magic, Leia's journal began a slow ascent upwards. She held her breath.

The book went up. . .up. . .up. . .until it was floating at least three feet off the ground.

"You're doing it!" Leia whisper-shouted.

Luke's frown had disappeared and was replaced with a proud look. Almost. . .cocky.

Leia's eyebrows shot up as the journal stayed suspended in the air and her _satchel_ started floating! She was about to tell Luke about it, when she felt an odd sensation tingle through her body.

A small yelp escaped her lips as her _body_ lifted off the ground. Leia didn't know whether to laugh or to scream, so she settled on trying to get down. Luke was still unaware of the controlled chaos happening around him.

However, as soon as Leia uncrossed her legs, her body tilted forwards and left her hanging upside down—it felt like something was holding onto her legs, letting her dangle the wrong way up. She squeaked again and clawed at the sand.

"Luke! _Luke_! Open your eyes! _Luke_!" the Princess yelled, struggling in midair. It was certainly a mindblowing experience, but she would very much like it to end.

Luke's blue eyes popped open and got even wider when he saw Leia hanging upside down in front of him. Then, he burst out laughing. Leia scowled.

"Luke, put me _down_ this _instant_! This is _weird_!" Her face was turning red, either from the blood rushing to her face, or embarrassment. Perhaps both.

The blond boy laughed harder. And _harder_. Leia assumed there would be a point when Luke would need air.

Leia counted fifty-six more seconds until her brother calmed down enough to speak.

"I-I. . .you look—y-you're. . ." He pointed towards Leia and then to the sky. Leia rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm in the _air._ And it's really not funny! So put me down!"

"Uh. . ." Luke trailed off. He sheepishly scratched the back of his head. Leia began to get nervous.

"I. . .don't know how," Luke finally admitted. Leia went pale.

" _What?!_ You knew how to get me up here, didn't you? How can you not know how to reverse it?"

"It's not my fault! I don't know how this Force stuff works yet! We didn't research this!"

"Okay, calm down. First, you need to concentrate, remember? So close your eyes."

Luke obliged and Leia said, "Okay, good. That's step one. Now, uh, you have to gather all your concentration and focus on getting me down."

"How do I do that?"

"Uh. . .just. . .imagine it. Picture me lowering to the ground and then focus on making it happen for real."

"That's pretty vague. . ."

"It's all I know. Just try."

Luke fought to center all his energy and concentration to one spot. At first, that place was hard to find. Then, suddenly, deep in his subconscious, the boy felt a small, warm pulsing. He pulled energy from his core and a mental image of Leia floating off the ground came into focus. Luke changed the image, making Leia lower to the ground. He opened one eye to check, and nothing had changed.

He tried again. Once more, he imagined Leia lowering gently to the ground. Outside of Luke's mind, Leia said, "Sometime this year would be nice," but her voice sounded far away.

Luke tried again. And again. And again. Just as the poor boy was beginning to get frustrated, a sharp sound broke his concentration.

Leia, who was getting bored with being suspended in the air, suddenly heard a loud voice call, "Luke! Leia!" As she tried to turn her head and pinpoint the source of the voice, she abruptly dropped straight to the ground.

"OW!" Leia yelled, landing on her head. Luke's eyes quickly opened and he crawled to Leia's side.

"You okay?" he asked, sounding guilty.

While Leia rolled over and shook off the dizziness, she responded, "Yeah, yeah, I'm good. Just a little. . .disoriented, I guess." She hastily brushed sand from her hair.

The twins had entirely forgotten about the voice, so you can imagine their surprise when Han Solo came running in their direction. He was jogging fervently and had a look of twisted relief and anger on his face. Luke and Leia stood to their feet and took a few steps back. Was Han happy to see them or mad about what they'd done?

When Han reached them, he didn't stop. Instead, he ran directly at the twins and swallowed them in a death hug. The force of the hug sent the whole group tumbling to the ground. Leia, who was still recovering from her landing, was not happy.

"Thank the gods above!" Han yelled. "You two are in so _so_ ** _SO_** much trouble! You almost gave me a heart attack! I was _worried_! What the _heck_ , you two!"

Leia shoved one of Han's arms off of her and groaned, "Ugh, get off! You're crushing us!"

Luke rolled out from under Han and dragged Leia with him.

"Yeah, geez! Leia just fell out of the sky and we both just learned how to levitate stuff! Give us a break!"

Han stood up, hoisting the twins up with him.

"Wait, wait," he said. "Leia did _what_? You learned how to _what_?"

"I didn't fall out of the _sky_. I just dropped a few feet and landed on my head," Leia corrected. "And we learned how to use the Force!"

"You did _WHAT_?"

"How many times do I need to repeat myself? You heard me."

"The Force? What's that? Isn't that the weird thing Jedi used to practice?" Han asked. He raised an eyebrow when the siblings nodded.

"We have a lot of explaining to do, don't we?" Leia said, frowning at the ground.

Han replied, "Oh, _plenty._ "

"Then we'd better have a seat. This could take a while."

 **One hour later. . .**

"So let me get this straight," Han said, rubbing his temples. "You were both born with a magical power, you're teaching yourselves to use it, and Leia wants to find Darth Vader to achieve. . .satisfaction?"

"Peace," Leia quietly corrected.

"Fine, peace then. And you're about to find a mode of transportation to take you to Vader, therefore taking you straight to the most evil being in the galaxy, leading you into eventual death and suffering. Right?"

The twins looked at each other. "Well, when you put it like that. . .you make it sound really stupid."

"It's already pretty stupid; it doesn't need my help."

Leia frowned. "So what about you? Why are _you_ suddenly here? How did you find us?"

"I was _told_ to find you guys. The old man said you'd be around here somewhere."

"Old man? Wait. . .Ben Kenobi? You were at his house? And he told you to find us? Why?"

"Heh, he said you'd need my help. That you guys would be heading off to find Vader and I could help you out."

". . ."

"So. . .I thought, sure, why not? If you're going to do somethin' dumb, I might as well do it with you."

"Where's Chewbacca?" Luke asked, glancing around the surrounding terrain. The Wookiee was nowhere to be found.

"Ah, I told him to head back to the old man's house. He didn't want to, but I made it an order. Just in case we need him later, I want him to be here."

Leia piped up, "Hey, soooo. . .if you're on board, we should probably get moving. The sooner the better."

With that, the trio got back on their feet and were about to set off on their new mission. However, a small problem arose before they actually started walking.

"Uh. . .which way do we go?" Luke asked. Leia cringed. Clearly, she hadn't thought of that.

"Well," the Princess began, "I was about to head north. Isn't that the direction of Mos Eisely?"

"I don't know. Either way, why would we go there?" Luke pointed out.

"Because. I have a good feeling. If there's any luck of finding Vader or his shuttle, it's _that_ direction." Leia pointed north. The boys exchanged worrisome glances but kept quiet. Then, they all set out north, with Leia leading the group.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Luke said, mere minutes into their journey.

"You already said that," Leia countered, not bothering to turn around to look at her brother.

Luke mumbled under his breath, "It seemed worth repeating."

 **A/N: There ya go! I hope it was worth the obnoxiously long wait! :/**

 **So, just thought I'd interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you. . .RANDOM FACTS, INFORMATION, EXPLAINING AND EVERYTHING UNDER THE CATEGORY OF OTHER.**

 **To start, Han Solo in this story is somewhere around 15 or 16 years old (cuz it's AU and I can do dat). I seem to keep forgetting that fact, and I was hoping none of you were, haha. I hope I'm doing okay with his character, since I've only ever known the ADULT Han Solo. Hopefully he's not borderline OOC... (•_•\**

 **Next, Luke and Leia are each developing their Force skills at their own pace. It may seem like Luke is actually more powerful than Leia (since he *did* lift her whole body), but Leia will turn out to be just as skilled :) Plus, I thought it was funny that normally LEIA is portrayed in fanfic to be reluctant to learning about the Force, so I said, "NOT IN THIS FIC, NUH-UH!"**

 **Look at this gal — breakin' stereotypes ;)**

 **Also, I deleted the scene in which Han tells Chewie to go back to Ben's house, because it was kinda boring and a little unnecessary. But basically, Chewbacca isn't WILLINGLY abandoning Han or anything. He's just obeying orders, but that doesn't mean he has to LIKE it. We'll see him again, though. He'll come in handy XD**

 **Another thing. . .Leia is taking a small (huge) break from journaling. The reason is this: her life is so hectic at this point that she A.) doesn't have the time, and B.) has vowed to wait until she's back home to write again. So, we won't be seeing her write in it for a while. There WILL be some more "past diary entries" again, and Luke may or may not swipe her journal again so HE can write in it. . .hehe. The journal is very very important, but it's just taking a lil' break.**

 **ONE MORE THING before you skeedaddle. . .I went BLACK FRIDAY SHOPPING! And I survived! First time doing that. I'm pretty proud, if ya can't tell, haha.**

 **Okay, now that I've bored you half to death, I'll let you get on with your life XD**

 **Thanks so much for reading! You guys are the best :) :)**  
 **-Lia**


	37. Chapter 37: Mission: Possible

**A/N: Well hello there, lovely readers! I'm back with another chapter, and, just a heads up, there's a lotta stuff packed into this one. I feel like this chapter needs to be read to the "Mission: Impossible" soundtrack, haha.**

 **Also, TWO WEEKS TILL CHRISTMAS! AAAHHHH! Do y'all celebrate Christmas? I do, and I just had a Christmassy piano recital today, so that was all festive and whatnot XD**

 **ALRIGHT, here's the chapter! Enjoy! WHEEEEE!**

Luke, Leia and Han were, needless to say, getting tired of journeying through the desert. It seemed liked it's all they ever did, though usually it was for a good reason. _Usually._

Leia was passing the time by observing the surroundings and trying to spot any objects in the distance that might be a town (preferably Mos Eisley). She was also marveling at how comfortable she was starting to feel in Tatooine's scorching heat. At first, the climate had horrified her, but she was beginning to adjust. She wondered if she would feel cold when she eventually got back to Alderaan.

Luke was apparently very tired, because he kept veering left or right and having to be set back on course by Han. The impromptu and early Force lessons appeared to be taking a toll on the boy.

Han, besides being occupied by keeping Luke on his feet, was having a hard time staying awake himself. Leia was the only one of the group who was fairly awake and energized. Perhaps it was because she was focused on the task at hand, or maybe it was derived from her energetic _personality._ Either way, the group was starting to slow down with Luke and Han half asleep.

Twenty minutes later, after much more stumbling and yawning, Han spotted something on the horizon. Small, rounded bumps filled a space in the distance. He caught his second-wind.

"Guys! Do you see that?" Han said, pointing in front of them. Leia looked up from counting her steps and shifted her gaze to the horizon. Her eyes lit up, and she grasped Luke's arm.

"Luke! Luke, look! Mos Eisely! We're here!" she shouted. Then, Leia decided she wasn't going to wait for the boys and took off towards the town. Han watched her run and debated on going after her. Finally, he settled on staying with Luke (now fully awake).

"Hey, where's she going?" Luke asked, starting to run towards Leia. Han reached out an arm to stop him, but the younger boy was already too far ahead.

"Never mind," Han mumbled. "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em."

The entire group reached Mos Eisely about five minutes later, although Han arrived a minute or so after the twins. When all three friends were together, Leia looked around for a moment and eventually led them behind an old, rusted speeder. They all sat down.

"Okay," Leia began. "Here's the plan: I'm gonna go scope out the area. I need you two to follow me from a _safe distance._ If I spot something, I'll let you know. We'll go from there. . .I guess. Any questions?"

Han raised his hand and Leia frowned.

"Anyone but you," she said. Luke raised his hand next.

"What are you looking for, exactly?" he asked. Leia thought about his question for a moment.

"I think I'm looking for stormtroopers," she replied. "Maybe we can find one of _their_ shuttles instead of Vader's."

"That would definitely make _me_ feel better," Han commented.

With the group at an agreement (more or less), Leia crept out from behind the old speeder and took a quick look at the surroundings. Tunic-clad civilians wandered the streets in every direction, as well as some scattered, small vehicles. It was the same throngs of culture as last time—and Leia would be lying if she said she didn't like it.

As she began wading through the crowd, the Princess quietly scanned the area. She made sure to keep an eye out for anything white or shiny, but so far nothing had captured her attention.

Leia pulled her hair around her face to hide from anyone who might recognize her. She knew Luke and Han were not far behind, though she didn't understand exactly _how_ she knew. She could just _feel_ it. That sort of feeling would take some getting used to.

Leia walked right past the infamous cantina where she and Luke had briefly worked. As she passed, Leia could hear muffled voices coming from within. She backtracked to eavesdrop.

"I already told you," someone was saying. "I don't _know_. She was only here for a few hours. She's not _my_ responsibility, and I couldn't care less where she is." The voice sounded male, and it took Leia all of two seconds to recognize it.

 _The bartender! He's talking about_ ** _me_** _!_

The young girl took her chances and peeked through the slits in the swinging doors. Sure enough, the barista man was standing amongst two other figures. . .both of them dressed in white and black armor. Stormtroopers.

A warning light went off in Leia's head, but she was much too curious to pay attention to it. As usual.

 _"_ It is _imperative_ that we find Princess Organa," said one of the troopers. "She and her counterpart are wanted by Lord Vader."

Leia's heart skipped a beat.

The other stormtrooper looked at his companion. "We need to continue searching," he said monotonously. The stormtroopers, clearly no longer interested in the bartender, started marching away—and straight toward Leia's hiding place behind the doors.

At the last possible second, Leia jerked sideways and dove behind a stack of crates. She held her breath until the soldiers were past her.

Limply, Leia rolled out from behind the crates and forced herself to breathe.

 _Inhale. . .exhale. . .inhale. . .exhale._

A few yards away, Luke and Han's faces could be seen. They were standing behind some barrels and looking at Leia with questioning stares. The Princess gave a thumbs up to assure them that nothing was wrong. Yet.

Behind the barrels, Luke and Han were having their own problems. Although Mos Eisley was a generally busy town, people were starting to notice the two boys hiding behind objects every few feet. And it was beginning to make Han paranoid.

"Everybody is staring at us," the pilot murmured, glancing around. Naturally, a few curious eyes were watching them with mild interest. Luke sighed and pulled Han to his feet.

"C'mon," the younger boy said. "Let's go catch up to Leia."

The Princess had stood up and was now walking in the direction the stormtroopers had gone. Han realized a second too late what she had planned.  
By the time Luke and Han were at the crate Leia had hid behind, the small girl was already lost in the crowd.

"Where'd she go?" Luke asked, standing on his tip toes to scan the crowd.

"She's following the troopers," Han whispered. "She wants to find their shuttle."

The two boys exchanged a worried glance and darted into the crowd.

 **~•~**

Leia searched the crowds of people until she spotted a glint of white somewhere ahead. She dodged the unsuspecting citizens and got closer to the flashes of white. They turned out to be the shiny armor of Imperial stormtroopers.

Leia gave a silent cheer.

The Princess trailed them, although she made sure to stay a safe distance behind. She didn't realize Han and Luke were following her until someone caught her arm, forcing her to stop.  
Leia turned around, ready to yell at whoever was touching her. However, when she saw it was only Han, Leia settled for scowling.

"Han!" she yelled. "Don't! I'll lose them if I stop for too long!"

Han gaped. "No way, Princess! You're not following _stormtroopers_ to their shuttle—not on my watch."

"I thought you _agreed_ to this plan!"

"I _did_ , until it set in! Leia, listen, you _can't!_ It's too dangerous."

Leia paused at Han's use of her actual first name. He never called her "Leia". It was always some playful nickname that referenced her royal status. Han must really be serious.

But she was determined. Ripping her arm out of Han's grip, Leia was about to shout again. Before she could, though, something else caught her eye.  
Somewhere to the right, something was blinking. Leia turned on her heel, acting on impulse, and dashed right.

Han was left momentarily stunned, then took off after Leia. Luke, who didn't have the slightest idea what was going on, just ran after his sister and Han.

The Princess ran until the object could be clearly seen. It was a shuttle. Leia gasped. This was too good.

She quickened her pace and shoved her way through the people until she stumbled out into a small clearing just outside the town. The shuttle wasn't anything special; it was the standard size in a plain, white color, and the landing lights were still blinking. As Leia inspected it, there was only one thing that stood out on the simple shuttle: it bore the telltale marking of the Imperial signia. The ramp was lowered.

"That's it!" Leia said aloud. She jogged towards the shuttle, channeling every bit of her strength to run as fast as she could. This opportunity was here for a reason, and she couldn't miss it.

When Leia reached the shuttle ramp, she didn't slow down. The young girl continued up the ramp, but only made it halfway before two arms wrapped around her waist, jerking her to an unceremonious halt.

It turned out to be Han, with Luke a few feet behind.

"Han! Let _go_! I have to— _ugh—_ get on this— _ugh!—_ ship!" Leia yelled, struggling in Han's arms. "It's my only chance! Let— _UGH—_ me go!"

Han didn't pay any attention to her objections and started carrying her down the ramp. Leia protested and squirmed, but nothing seemed to deter Han from his decision. Finally, Leia gave up on words, swung one of her legs, and kicked Han— _hard._

"Son of a _Sith_!" Han yelled. He dropped Leia in the process of grabbing his shin and she scurried away immediately. The Princess clambered up the ramp and wrapped her arms around one of the ramp lifters, holding on for dear life. Determination made her eyes hard and Leia braced her legs tightly against the ramp.

Once Han recovered, he took one step up the ramp and opened his mouth to scold Leia. The Princess, however, spoke first.

"Han, listen to me! This ship belongs to the stormtroopers, and they could be back any minute. We need to get on— _now._ It could be the only chance I have for a long time!"

Han seemed to consider it.

"Look, I know how much you want answers," Han said, his tone much gentler now. "But you're worth a lot more than you realize. There's a whole _planet_ that needs you, and this is way too _dangerous_."

"For me or for you?" Leia fired back.

"For everyone! I don't know what's gotten into you lately, but this is a _suicide mission_! I need you to come down, Leia."

The small girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath. A minute of uncomfortable silence passed before Leia opened her eyes and said, "No, Han. I need _you_ to come _up._ We all know I can't do this by myself. I—I'm not ready to tell you everything that I've been thinking about, but I need to do this. Trust me. Please."

Han forced himself to meet Leia's eyes, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to resist the mesmerizing brown orbs. Leia kept up her silent plea until Han caved.

"Okay," Han said. It clearly took all his willpower to say his next words: "Let's go find Darth Vader."

"Really?!" Leia yelled, releasing her grip on the ramp lifter. "You're—you're actually gonna come with?"

"Yep. I don't have much of a choice."

"Awesome! Thank you!" Leia took a few steps like she was going to hug him, but then retracted and held out her fist.

"What's that for?" Han asked.

"Fist bump." Leia picked up Han's hand, curled it into a fist, and knocked it against her own.

Then, as if noticing for the first time, she said, "Hey, where's Luke?"

Han was equally as surprised. Both he and Leia turned their heads in every direction, but Luke was nowhere to be seen. Just as the panic was starting to set in, Luke came crashing around the corner of the nearest building, gesturing wildly.  
Leia and Han looked confused. As Luke ran up to them, he tried to push them up the ramp.

"What the. . .? Kid, what's going on?" Han asked.

Between ragged breaths, Luke gasped, "Stormtroopers—around the corner—coming—gotta go—NOW!"

Immediately, Han jumped into action mode. He grabbed Luke and Leia by the arms and practically dove into the shuttle, but not before Leia caught the fastest glimpse of white armor emerging from behind a sandy building.

The inside of the shuttle was no more interesting than the outside, and there weren't many places to hide. The whole ship seemed to be only one space until Luke spotted a slim metal door around a corner.

"Guys, in here!" Luke said. Han palmed the controls for the door and dragged the twins inside. Quickly, he re-sealed the door.

The trio found themselves in a cramped room full of metal boxes with the Imperial logo on them. A small cargo hold, Leia realized.

Very little light was given to illuminate the tight space, but a small line of light shone from under the door and lit up a tiny patch on the floor.

Suddenly, Leia realized she still had her satchel over her shoulder. She reached into it and removed a short glowrod. Han grabbed it eagerly and shook it, providing them with enough light to see the rest of the room. To the group's shock, the small area contained more than just boxes.

At least five dangerous-looking guns were lined up on the far wall. A wooden crate, looking very out of place next to the shiny metal ones, made Leia curious. She plucked the glowrod from Han's fingers and carefully stalked over to the crate.

A little voice in the back of Leia's mind told her to stay away from the box, and Leia jumped when she realized the voice was actually _Luke_. For the time being, she shoved that to the back of her mind. He shouldn't be messing with her head anyway.

Leia approached the crate and noticed the top was ajar. A faint glow peeked out of the crack in the lid. Leia's curiosity grew until she yanked the wooden lid off. She couldn't hold back her gasp.

"What is it?" Han asked, trying to peer over Leia's shoulder. The Princess reached into the box and, with shaky hands, pulled out a single object.  
Leia turned around to show Han and Luke.

She held a datapad, which wasn't that surprising in itself. However, the datapad's screen was lit up and displaying an image: a portrait of Leia. The Princess exited the image and explored the information being recorded in the datapad.

Articles and articles about _Leia_ appeared. As if that wasn't enough, several _more_ photos of the Alderaanian Princess lit up the screen. A photo of her at age six, in her garden. . .a picture of her at eleven years old, at a tutoring session. . .and one that was clearly taken recently.

Leia gasped once more when she recognized the recent picture—it was of her and her Father, as well as her aunts. They were downstairs in the Organa's home. . .and, in the photo, Leia looked angry. In fact, she appeared to be yelling at the adults.

 _The day I decided I was going to run away._

Leia let the datapad drop to the durasteel floor.

"I knew Vader has been looking for me recently. . .but I didn't know the Empire's been watching me my whole _life_ ," she whispered.

 **A/N: WELL, that escalated quickly :p**

 **On the bright side, the next chapter will contain a bit of action, so get your AKSHUN HATS on, peeps.**

 **Some BREIF explanations: YEAHHHH Luke and Leia can communicate telepathically, they just don't really realize it. Luke was just THINKING that Leia shouldn't touch the box, but it ended up getting transmitted to her mind. They'll figure out some of that Force stuff soon, don't worry XD**

 **And yes, the stormtroopers will board the shuttle. And yes, chaos will ensue. When does it not?**  
 **AAAAAND, Leia's true motives will be revealed next chapter as well. Ya know, the reason she wants to find Vader—the REAL reason.**

 **Okay, thanks for reading! Drop a review and have a lovely day/night, everyone!**

 **-Lia :)**


	38. Chapter 38: Homesick

**A/N: MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE (or Christmas, depending on where y'all live haha)!**  
 **I'm back with another jam-packed chapter, so hold onto your metaphorical hats and get ready!**

 **We see all our old pals, like Darth Vader and stormtroopers! Oh, and let's not forget another PAST DIARY ENTRY brought to you by Leia. Consider it my Christmas gift to y'all, haha XD**

 **OKAY! Let's do this!**

 **WHEEEEE! (Why. Just why.)**

Darth Vader had never been patient—not when he was a boy, not when he was a teenager, and certainly not now. In fact, the impatience had long since morphed into something far more dangerous: worry.

Worry and anxiety were also not usually part of Vader's vocabulary. . .at least, not anymore.

He didn't just _want_ to find Princess Leia; he _needed_ to find her. Vader had felt something shift in the Force recently, and he knew Leia to be the cause. He also knew the Princess was somewhere on that forsaken desert planet. However, actually _finding_ the Princess was proving to be a problem.

Every time Vader felt close, something would block his perception of where Leia was. And that wasn't the only problem. Once or twice, Darth Vader had gotten extremely close to finding the Princess, but he'd felt a force so strong that it made him stop in his tracks. Then, the Princess would get farther away, taking her distinct Force-signature with her. All of that, with Vader's lack of patience on top, was enough to drive the Sith Lord insane.

Every now and then, Vader would question his own motives. Why was he in such desperate pursuit of the young Princess? He had never paid much attention to her home life (or academic life, for that matter) on Alderaan, and Leia had never shown any signs of being sensitive to the Force.

Vader would then wonder if the Princess _had_ shown signs, but he'd just never noticed. If there _were_ any early signs of Force-sensitivity, they would've never made their way to Vader's knowledge. The Princess had never even left her home planet.

Vader had limited experience with Princess Leia and her planet. Alderaan was calm, peaceful, had no planetary defense system, and was the home of Senator Organa, Leia's father. The planet never directly disobeyed the Empire, though Vader suspected Alderaan didn't exactly _agree_ with the Empire either.

Then there was the matter of Leia. Vader knew her age, what she looked like, her parents, her home planet, and her position as royalty. That was it. Bail Organa was deeply involved in politics, so Vader supposed Leia would follow in her father's footsteps one day. She didn't have any other interests Vader knew of.

The Dark Lord had met the Alderaanian Princess only once, though he'd _seen_ her many more times. Leia was only a little girl when he'd first met her. Even then, when he'd been so close, Vader hadn't detected the faintest trace of the Force in the girl.

Other than that, was there even anything interesting about Princess Leia?

Yes, Vader thought, there actually was. The small girl carried a striking resemblance to someone Vader had known long ago. . .someone he couldn't ever forget and wasn't sure if he ever _wanted_ to. A certain beautiful woman, Padmé Amidala.

Vader's wife.

They had been in love—in the most deep, true love. Padmé had been pregnant. Vader had been having dreams of his wife dying in childbirth. After that, everything plummeted so quickly. Vader had done all he could to save Padmé from dying. He'd sacrificed his career, his best friend, his _soul._ And for what? In the end, Padmé had died anyway. Because of him.

Vader squeezed his eyes shut as tight as they could go without causing him pain. He clenched his fists. If there would've been people nearby, someone would've been thrown into a wall.

Darth Vader forced his mind to disregard the awful memories and focus on the present. What mattered _now_ was finding the Princess and proving himself right. Or perhaps he would prove himself wrong.

Either way, Princess Leia had demonstrated ability in the Force, and Vader needed to know just how strong in the Force she was. And when he found her, he would pretend she _didn't_ make him think about Padmé. That she _didn't_ remind him of another time. Another life.

 **~•~**

Leia let the datapad drop to the floor. Her whole body shivered, as if the shuttle had suddenly become several degrees colder.

"Wow," Luke breathed. "That's. . .wow."

Han was less baffled and more aggressive.

He said, "What?! Are you kidding me? The _Empire has been watching you_ since. . .forever? That's—that's. . . _creepy_!"

Leia agreed. It just didn't make sense. Was the Empire interested in her for her political potential? Her school smarts? Her royal position? Or. . .maybe something less obvious.

Her. . .Force potential? The idea made Leia feel uncomfortable. If that was indeed the reason, the Emperor would've had to know something about her since she was a baby. But. . .why hadn't the Empire questioned her parents? Or questioned _her?_ The thoughts spun around in her head until Leia had to sit down. Luke plopped down next to her.

"That's so weird," he said. "Why would they be watching you all the time? What did you do?"

His last question was clearly meant as a joke, but Leia was wondering if she _had_ done something wrong. Or something right?

 _Ugh! Why is everything so COMPLICATED?!_

Luke seemed to pick up on his sister's furious emotions. He placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Hey, if it makes you feel any better, I don't think you did anything wrong. Maybe the Empire just watches _all_ royalty? Is that a thing?"

Leia shook her head.

"No, Luke, that's not it. I'm just trying to think if I ever did anything at home that. . .I don't know, maybe. . .revealed my—what's it called?—Force-sensitivity."

"It's possible, I guess. Ya think that's why Vader's after you?"

"That could be. But if he's known all this time, Vader could've just flown down to Alderaan, grabbed me, and left again. But he waited until just recently. I don't think he knew."

"What about Emperor Palpatine? Do you think _he_ knew?"

"I bet he did. The Emperor knows _everything_ that happens. He was probably the one to make sure I was being watched. But. . .why?!"

"Can I say something?" Han said from behind them.

"Be my guest. I'm open to ideas."

"Alright, I really think you should be quiet."

"No! This is _serious_ , Han! I—"

"Seriously, Leia! _Be. Quiet._ " Han held up a hand to silence Leia. The confusion on the Princess's face disappeared and was replaced with realization.

Just moments ago, before rushing aboard the shuttle, the trio had seen stormtroopers heading towards them. Surely they must be to the shuttle now, right?

Luke whispered, "Listen."

Something beyond the white metal door was making noise. Loud thumps pounded against the floor and rattled the crates closest to the ground. Everyone instinctively dropped low and made themselves as small as possible.  
Through the crack between the door and the floor, Leia could see several shadows pass by. After a few more endless seconds, the group could hear voices.

"Do you think the second squad found anything?" a stormtrooper was saying.

Another one answered with, "I doubt it. TK-327 reported an hour ago and they hadn't noticed anything important."

Stormtrooper #1 said, "Lord Vader must be getting restless. I don't think it's a good idea to take breaks like this."

"Nah, we're in the clear. If the darn Princess isn't in this town, we're wasting our time anyway."

Leia cringed. They were talking about her again. She strained her ears to catch a second conversation taking place between two other stormtroopers who must've been farther away from the door.

"So. Why does Vader want the Alderaanian girl anyway? Isn't she just a kid?" said Trooper #3.

Trooper #4 answered in a nonchalant tone. "Does it matter? We aren't here to question Vader's orders. The kid must be important."

"Maybe. But don't act like it doesn't make you wonder sometimes. A child can't have much significance to Lord Vader. If she does, there must be a deeper meaning behind all this."

"You're awfully inquisitive for a soldier. Like I said, just bear it along with the rest of us. Princess Organa. . ."

The dialogue trailed off as the stormtroopers stomped away from the door, where Leia could no longer hear them—not that she wanted to, after that last conversation. If it wouldn't have made too much noise, Leia would have kicked something. Instead, she sat up and leaned back on her hands. Luke and Han did the same.

"Wow," Han said as Leia sighed. "Things are pretty complicated, huh?"

"You have no idea," Leia whispered.

Frustration was not an emotion Leia felt often, but it had been brewing in her subconscious for many days now. As the Princess pondered the most recent events of her life, the frustration bubbled over the surface and erupted in her mind like a volcano.

It only showed itself by a single tear that slipped down Leia's cheek.  
Luke wrapped an arm around his sister, and Leia leaned into it for only a moment before pulling away.

Later, when the stormtroopers had settled down and the Suns had set, Leia withdrew to the farthest corner of the room. Han and Luke made themselves as comfortable as they could get on a few boxes covered with a tarp of some sort.

Needless to say, Leia was deep in thought about her predicament. She tossed and turned for hours until finally deciding that sleep was overrated.

Leia curled up in a sitting position and pulled out her journal. Then, by the light of her dim glowrod, she began to silently read another old diary entry.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _We're finally here! Father has been acting strangely all week, and, just two days ago, he decided he wanted to go on a little camping trip to (I quote) "clear his mind and get away for a while". Of course, I wanted to go with, but I didn't think he'd let me. So, I didn't ask. But then HE asked ME if I wanted to come, so obviously I said yes!_

 _Now here we are! I'm not sure this is an actual camping spot, and we've never gone camping before. You know, it's not "proper". *Cue eyeroll*_

 _But anyway, Father brought me here in his speeder, but he left it farther back and we walked for a while. It was. . .kinda nice, if I'm being honest._

 _Alderaan is mostly mountains and lakes, but we do have_ ** _some_** _forests. The wooded area we're in now is actually quite peaceful. I thought there would be a ton of bugs, mud, and weird outdoor noises, but I've I only heard a few birds chirp. Oh, and there's a stream nearby too. I can hear the rushing water already!_

 _Father's built a campfire, and the whole scene is nice and calm. I rarely ever leave the palace, let alone stay overnight in the woods! It's definitely a change, but a good one. Father seems to be content, and I am too._

 _Nature has always fascinated me, ever since I was really little. Especially the stars. I would always sit in the garden pavilion and stare at the night sky for literally hours on end. Well, I still do that, when I can. The thing about the stars is just that there are so_ ** _many_** _, you know? Plus, some of them are planets—I just don't know which ones, yet._

 _If I look reeeeally hard, I can sorta see Coruscant from my balcony. At least, my dad says it's Coruscant. It'd be fun to go there someday, I've heard so much about it._

 _I wonder if anyone has ever tried to count the stars. I'm sure someone has, but did they succeed? I feel like it'd be impossible to count the stars, but Father says nothing is truly impossible._

 _I think Father is the only one who knows I own this journal. Mother doesn't know, or she would've taken it away by now. My aunts don't know, because they'd lecture me about it until my ears fell off._ _My tutors_ ** _definitely_** _don't know, though I suppose they should. I bet they'd all have a breakdown if they found out what I write about. Yikes._

 _You know, I don't think you ever truly appreciate nature until you can observe it up close. I mean, our palace garden is really beautiful, and Mother makes sure it stays that way all the time. But out here—in the center of the woods—it somehow feels different. Almost like we're at the core of the planet, and you can feel its heart beating. I like it. It makes you feel alive._

 _I wish I could stay here forever. No responsibilities, no studies. . .no preparation for my "future". When my aunts say "future", they really mean, "when I grow up and become Queen so they can show me off to the galaxy and brag about how much they prepared me"._

 _Sometimes I think it_ ** _would_** _be fun to be Queen. After all, you'd control a whole planet! How cool is that?_  
 _But then. . .you'd also have TRIPLE the amount of responsibilities and QUADRUPLE the amount of stress. That's a lot of work, if you ask me (which no one does, because no one cares what I think)._

 _In other news, last week I tripped and bumped into my painting easel in my room. It fell over and landed against the mirror I have on my wall. Now there's a crack in the mirror's glass, and the crack runs up the whole side of the mirror. Aunt Celly was FURIOUS (you could practically see the steam billowing out of her ears), but I actually find it really funny. Now my mirror finally fits in with the rest of my room._

 _Father said, "Oh, well. I've always thought that mirror needed a bit of personality." Mother only shook her head and said, "It was only a matter of time until this happened." But both of my parents were totally trying not to smile._

 _Okay, I'd better stop writing for now. I think Father and I are going to bed soon, but I think I wanna stay up a bit longer and stargaze. I won't be able to do things like this forever, so why not enjoy them while I can?_

 _-Leia_

Back in the present, Leia smiled as more silent tears rolled down her face. The smile was one of happiness, but the tears came for a different reason.  
Leia missed Bail. She missed that time that they'd gone camping. When they'd gotten home, Leia's mother had been upset because Bail got mud all over his shoes.

And Leia's mirror still had that crack in it. Leia had taken the liberty to trace the fracture in the glass with a pink marker, so now the crack looked like a hot pink streak.

With the quietest of sobs, Leia closed her journal and tucked it back in her satchel. Her fingers, like always, briefly touched something. The Princess pulled out her tiara again and studied it. When one of the jewels reflected Leia's face, she couldn't contain the emotions anymore.

Hot tears streamed down Leia's cheeks as she tried to conceal her sobs. She lay back down and attempted to calm herself down. Crying made people look _weak,_ and Leia was not _weak._ Or. . .was she?

After several minutes of muffled crying, Leia fell asleep, still clutching the tiara tightly against her chest.

And Luke, who had, in fact, been watching the whole time from across the room, blinked back his own tears. His heart ached for his sister.

 _Whatever her plan is, it'd better work._

 **A/N: Back so soon? Did ya like the chappie?**

 **I don't know about you, but that last part of this chapter kinda pulled on my heart strings. . .and I'm the one who WROTE it.**

 **Let me know whatcha think by dropping me a comment/review, and have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! Byeeee! :)**

 **-Lia**


	39. Chapter 39: Big Mistake

**A/N: WELP, I'm sorry for goin' AWOL over the past week. . .with high school comes midterms, and with midterms comes bucket-loads of stress that beats down time to publish chapters :/**

 **But I'm back now! And to be honest, things start picking up in this story now. Real quickly, too. I also realize the end is close. . .which is kinda sad, but it was bound to happen someday, right?**

 **PS. . .I hope you all had a rockin' New Year! 2017 is gonna be a great one—I CAN FEEEEL IT.**

 **So. Without further ado, I present to you. . .CHAPTER 39!**

 **WHEEEEEEEE!**

The next morning, Han woke up first. The twins were still asleep, and, by the looks of it, should probably sleep a little longer. It was a rough night.

So, Han pushed himself up off the floor and carefully stepped over to the sealed door. No noise could be heard except the twins' steady breathing, but Han pressed his ear to the door, just in case.  
There didn't seem to be anyone else aboard the shuttle. Had the stormtroopers left to scout out the town again?

Han palmed the door controls, hoping the troopers were really gone. The door slid open with a quiet clanking sound. Han peered out into the shuttle and found no armored soldiers. Finally, he decided it was all clear.

Inside the small cargo hold, Leia woke up from the light that was now flooding into the room. She groaned, rolled over, and rubbed her tired eyes. Luke woke up shortly after and crawled over to the door.

"Hey!" he said. "The stormtroopers are gone. Han's out there, exploring the rest of the ship. Think it's safe to leave?"

Leia sighed. "Yeah, probably. If Han's out there, it should be fine."

That was all Luke needed to hear. The young boy dashed out the door as fast as his legs could carry him. Leia stood up to follow, but something on the floor caught her eye. The datapad.

With a split second decision, Princess Leia grabbed her satchel, slid the Imperial datapad into it, and exited the cargo hold.

It took Leia a moment to find her friends. They were exploring every square inch of the cockpit, since both Han and Luke were interested in piloting.

"Find anything good?" Leia asked, startling the two boys.

"Not really," Han started. Then, almost as an afterthought, he added, "Here, catch."

Leia just barely caught the object Han threw at her.

"A blaster?" she asked, turning it over in her hands.

"Yep. Imperial grade, standard hold-out blaster. Not very big, but it'll get the job done if it comes down to it."

"Why did you give it to _me_?"

"You might need it. And you look like you could handle one of those better than the huge stormtrooper guns I found over there," Han said, pointing to another wall. It contained a rack of large, black military blasters, not unlike the ones in the cargo hold.

Leia looked at her little blaster again before saying, "Well. . .thanks." She clipped the gun to her side and pulled the edge of her sandy tunic over it. She'd practiced with blasters before, but she'd never been given one of her own.

Han began walking towards the closed ramp of the shuttle.

"I'm goin' out to the town and buying some supplies, if I can find anything. Can you guys stay here and not destroy, burn, smash, ruin, dent or kill anything?"

Leia and Luke grinned at each other.

"We make _no_ promises," they synced, knowing they really weren't lying. They walked a path of destruction, so it seemed.

Han only rolled his eyes in response. He turned to lower the ramp, but Leia stopped him.

"Why can't we come with?" she asked. "Luke probably knows this place better than you do. We could help."

"No, you two are gonna stay here. The stormtroopers are out there on patrol and they're looking for _you_ , Your Worship. See my point?"

"I guess. . ."

"Good. Stay here with Luke, keep each other _out of trouble_ , and if the troopers come back, hide. Got it?"

"Whatever," Leia mumbled begrudgingly, not meeting Han's eyes.

With that, Han lowered the shuttle's ramp and stepped outside. Blinding sunlight shone into the shuttle, forcing Luke and Leia to momentarily cover their eyes.

"Wow, sunlight!" Luke said, squinting. "I guess you don't realize how much you miss it until you're stuck in a dark room all day."

Leia cracked a small smile as she made her way to the pilot's chair in the cockpit. She flopped down in the chair and leaned back, propping her feet up on the control board.

"So," Leia started, only partially kidding, "what should we do? Han's gone, and we have a whole Imperial shuttle to ourselves."

Luke seated himself in the second cockpit chair.

"I don't know," he said carefully. "Han told us not to do anything stupid."

"Where's the fun in that?" Leia laughed, absently bouncing one foot back and forth.

"Maybe we should just stick to exploring the ship." Not that Luke didn't enjoy living without Han breathing down his neck, but Imperials meant business. He had no interest in getting caught.

"Whatever you say, _little_ brother."

Luke glared at his sister but decided not to make a comment. There really wasn't much point.

Leia hopped out of the pilot's seat and strolled leisurely to the center of the shuttle. She paced around for a while, searching the ceiling for an idea. Her feet made soft thuds on the metallic floor, which made Leia think of something.

"Luke, look!"

The young boy joined his sister in the center and looked around, confused.

"What? I don't see anything," he said.

"Exactly. But, here—stomp your foot. Hear that?"

Luke obeyed and brought his foot down on the floor. He was rewarded with a loud _clang._

"Okay. . .? "Luke said, raising an eyebrow. "What? It made noise. Congratulations."

"No, it was _hollow_. Do you know what that means?"

"That. . .it. . .uh. . ."

"It means the floor right here is thinner than the rest, which means there's a space under us somewhere, which means there's gotta be a _hatch_ around here!"

"A hatch? You think there's a secret room down there?"

"Yeah!"

Luke opened his mouth to debate the matter further, but Leia was already crawling around on the floor, running her hands along the floor. He rolled his eyes.

One minute passed. . .

Five minutes. . .

Ten minutes. . .

At twelve minutes, Leia yelped.

"What?" Luke said, scrambling to her side. The past twelve minutes had been unbearably boring, and Luke was eager for some action.

"I found something! Help me lift this."

With a look of disbelief, Luke placed his hands next to Leia's and felt a small ridge that was only millimeters higher than the rest of the floor.

The twins slid their fingernails under the hatch and tried to pry it open. Both Luke and Leia strained with effort until the trap door lifted an inch off the ground. Then, they placed their fingers under the hatch and kept pulling.

After several more minutes (consisting of pulling, pushing, grunting, sighing and lifting), Luke held the hatch open because he insisted he was, "the stronger twin," which had earned an eyeroll from Leia. The Princess eyed the dark space below with suspicion.

"What's even _down_ there?" Leia asked, cautiously putting one foot in the opening. No devilish monster reached up and yanked her in, so that was good.

"I don't know," Luke said, the strain of holding the trap door open evident in his voice. "But you better get down there before I let the hatch slam shut!"

"'Stronger twin'", Leia muttered. "Yeah, right."

Regardless of Luke's struggle with the hatch, which was inexplicably heavy, Leia was hesitant to actually drop down into the black opening. It wasn't a huge drop, because the shuttle wasn't very large, but it was still enough to be scary.

"Just _go_!" Luke yelled.

"Okay, okay!"

Leia braced herself for whatever was below and let her body plunge into the hole.

She landed quickly, but painfully. Leia had tried to land on her feet, but it turned into fumbling for something to hold onto and somersaulting into the wall.

When Luke heard the noise, he called, "Everything okay?"

Leia shouted from below, "Uh, yeah, I guess."

"Rough landing?"

"Something like that. Get down here! Oh, and bring my satchel—I left it up there, and I can't see!"

"Uh. . .okay, I can try."

Up on the main floor of the shuttle, Luke searched for the leather bag until he spotted it lying on the other side of the hatch. The blonde boy sighed.

Carefully, he moved his right leg out from under him and stretched it across the floor, trying to grab the satchel with his foot. In the process, the trap door started closing.

"Gah!" Luke cried, now holding the door with only one hand.

Leia, down below and completely oblivious to Luke's struggle, was stumbling around in search of a light.  
She followed the beam of dim light coming through the open hatch and gazed upwards. With great surprise, Leia noticed a very prominent feature of the wall.

"Hey," she grumbled to no one in particular. "There's a ladder! That would've been nice to know before I jumped down here."

All ladder-based grudges aside, Leia wrapped her fingers around the first wrung and started climbing up to see what was taking Luke so long.

Luke had finally managed to get the bag's strap around his foot and was now attempting to pull the satchel towards him. With every inch closer the satchel got, the more Luke had to strain to keep the hatch open. Plus, unbeknownst to Luke, Leia was already halfway up the ladder.

"Ew, this ladder's all rickety," Leia said to herself. "It better not break." As if one cue, the ladder creaked under her weight.

Luke groaned one more time and used his foot to fling the bag towards him. It landed next to him and seemed to be on the verge of sliding into the hole.

Luke grabbed the satchel, took a deep breath, and dove directly into the opening.

Now, many bad things came out of his decision, as you may have guessed.  
First, his feet came down on Leia's head, knocking her to the ground below. . .again.

Second, Leia's satchel flew out of Luke's grasp. Consequently, it landed on top of Leia, spilling the many contents all over the place.

Third, Luke's "leap of faith" sent him going the way of Leia's first landing. Except, he landed right on Leia's stomach, to top off the human-and-satchel dog pile.

Fourth, and definitely the most problematic, was that the hatch door dropped and snapped shut.

Both of the twins shrieked until they hit the floor. Then, only Leia squeaked, "Ow!"

Leia stayed on the floor (underneath Luke) for a few seconds. Eventually, the realization of what happened started to sink in. Within moments, Leia was on her feet.

It proved to be an impulsive move, however, when Leia's shaky legs sent her down yet again.

But the seriousness of the situation kept Leia's determination set high. She forced her body to crawl over to the ladder. Without the opening above, their only light was effectively extinguished.

"Luke! Get over here _right now._ I need you to check the hatch!" the Princess growled.

Luke rolled over from the other side of the small space and cringed.

"Do you think. . . ?" he asked apologetically.

"Yeah, I _do_. So go check. If that hatch doesn't open. . .you are _so_ dead."

Luke picked up on his sister's hostile attitude, which only made his walk to the ladder that much slower. Once he made it to the metal ladder and reached the top, there was more hesitation.

"Luke, just open it!" Leia said, now standing firmly on her feet.

Luke glanced down at Leia, then pressed a palm against the trap door. When he pushed harder and the hatch still didn't open, the pushing steadily grew into frantic pounding.

Leia's heart starting beating as fast as Luke was banging on the hatch.

"Luke, stop, stop, stop! If it's closed, we can't open it from the inside!"

Luke stopped pounding and reluctantly climbed down.

"If it can't be opened from the inside, why does this room even _exist_?" Luke asked. Leia had to agree it was a valid point.

"I don't know. . .maybe it was some sort of cargo hold?"

"Isn't there a cargo hold up there, too?"

"Oh. Right. Well. . .I guess this could be a storage room. . .or a smuggling compartment."

"What's a smuggling compartment?"

"Han has some of those on his ship. The one day, I was trying to find where I left my datapad, and I ran into Han pulling stuff out of these hidden compartments under the floor."

"Wow, cool! Ya think that's what _this_ is?"

"I honestly don't know. Maybe. The more important thing we should be worrying about is: _we're trapped in here!_ "

"I know, I know! Don't freak out, okay? It's fine, I'm sure we can work something out."

"No, Luke, you got us _sealed_ in a _smuggling compartment_! We'll run out of oxygen, we'll _die_ in here, and no one will find us for years! When some Imperial officer finally finds us, we'll be nothing but bones! And I _refuse_ to be found _dead_ in a Tatooine _potato sack!_ "

"Okay, calm down, Miss Drama Queen! It's not that bad. . .okay, can you find your glowrod?"

Leia dropped to her hands and knees, running her hands along the floor. While Leia was crawling around on the floor, Luke busied himself by observing their new surroundings.

The ceiling was really only the main floor of the shuttle, but it was solid. There were no small holes or slits in the ceiling that Luke could see. Four long, thin pipes ran along the ceiling, most likely carrying coolant or some other ship-related liquid.

The walls were made out of a thin metal, but it still looked sturdy. And of course, there was a ladder in the corner, which appeared to be the only exit or entry. Things didn't look good.

From the far side of the room, a faint glow caught Luke's attention, followed by Leia's, "Found it!"

Luke paced over to his twin and glanced around. Leia apparently had discovered an entirely different part of the room that Luke had somehow failed to notice. It was a narrow crawl-space just behind a mess of tangled wires. Leia was lying on her back inside the small tunnel and was inspecting something above her.

"Hey, Luke," she said. "There's a hole up here. You can see right to the main floor! I can see a light, but it's too far up there to spot anything else. Wanna see?"

Luke's curiosity brought him into the crawl-space with Leia, who scooted over to make room. Leia was right—a light could be seen through the hole, but Luke couldn't make out any objects.

"Well, at least some air comes in here," Leia said from the other end of the tunnel. Luke drew his attention away from the peep hole. Sure enough, a metal vent was blowing out a steady stream of cool air.

"Wait," Luke said, waving his hands in front of the vent. "Air wouldn't come through here unless. . ."

A sudden rumble sent a tingling vibration through the floor. Within moments, the twins were out of the crawl-space and back by the ladder.

Another noise had Luke and Leia exchanging horrified looks—the whine of the shuttle's engine.

 **A/N: THE HORROR!**

 **So it looks like our lil' twins will be going on their excursion alone. . .that can't be good. Or can it? Mwahahahahaaaaa.**

 **I mean, you probably saw this coming once the twins got stuck in the bottom room. . .but maybe you didn't know and I surprised ya. . .I dunno. Lemme know, I guess, haha XD**

 **SO, now that Luke and Leia know they're in deep bantha doodoo, I wonder if the stormtroopers will find them. . . ? I can neither confirm nor deny anything at this point, but if you happen to have any ideas of your own, feel free to drop them in a review/comment (or PM for my FFN buddies)!**

 **And now, I hope you all have a splendid day/night, and I'll see ya next time! :)**  
 **Byeeeee!**

 **-Lia**


	40. Chapter 40: Curiosity Killed The Cat

**A/N: OH MY GOSH, HI! So, that was really intense, but GUYS. This is chapter 40! This story has 40 stinkin' chapters! WOW.**

 **Of course, there is some promised action in this chapter. I worked super hard on this one, and it's significantly longer than, like, every other chapter. BUT, I have a feeling you're gonna like it.**  
 **Also, FFN is being funky and won't let me respond to reviews, so here's a couple responses:**

 **changingdestiny40: hi! Sorry I couldn't respond to your review sooner. I think most of your questions will be answered in this chapter, hehe ;) and I'll give you my opinion of Donald Trump in a PM once I can get that working. Enjoy this one! :)**

 **thechosenbibliopath: did I get that username right? And thanks for your review! Glad you're enjoying the story so far! :)**

 **A'ight, let's get this train rolling.**  
 **WHEEEEEE!**

Han Solo had _known_ that leaving the twins alone was probably not the smartest thing to do. However, bringing them into town around stormtroopers wasn't ideal either. So, obviously, Han left Luke and Leia in the care of only each other. It seemed like a doable idea at the time. And, honestly, Han almost _knew_ something would go terribly wrong.

Yet, nothing could've prepared him for the sound of an engine as he was heading back to the shuttle. Han took off running as fast as he could, pleading to himself that it wasn't _the_ shuttle. Hoping he wasn't too late.

To his dismay and horror, it was in fact _the_ shuttle. And, no matter how fast Han ran, he _was_ too late.

Almost immediately after Han reached the shuttle where it was parked, the white ship lifted off the ground, sending clouds of sand flying everywhere.

Han's stomach dropped.

A million awful (and, typically, somewhat pessimistic) thoughts raced through the young pilot's mind. Had Luke and Leia been found? Captured? Were they alive? Were they even _on_ the shuttle?

 _Of course they were on the shuttle,_ Han thought. He knew the twins would've at least obeyed his orders _that_ far. But how long would they last without being found? Assuming they weren't already discovered.

Han clenched his fists. There was one person he knew that could possibly do something about this. The only question was, _would_ this man do something? Han decided there was only one way to find out.

So, with a goal set firmly in his mind, Han Solo turned and jogged back into the crowds of Mos Eisley. He had to be fast.

 **~•~**

Luke and Leia sat as still as possible while muffled footsteps echoed above them. Neither twin dared to so much as whisper, so they were forced to communicate only with their expressions.

Currently, Luke looked like he might be trying to eavesdrop on the stormtroopers on the upper level. Leia just looked terrified.

Luke suddenly began to stand up, much to Leia's horror. When Luke was fully on his feet, he motioned for Leia to do the same. She shook her head. So, Luke pointed urgently at the ceiling and cupped a hand around his ear to prove his point.

Leia got the hint. Apparently the stormtroopers were having _quite_ the conversation.

The Princess cautiously shifted to a kneeling position, as if she was afraid she would make the floor squeak. It wouldn't—it was metal.

 _Just stand!_ Luke mouthed. _Listen._

Leia obeyed and crowded closer to her brother. Deep voices and parts of conversations drifted towards her ears, but the dialogue sounded tense. The twins glanced at each other and listened.

". . .not going to be happy," Trooper 1 said. His tone had an "I told you so" sort of feel to it, but he was reprimanded by someone else.

"Hey, this whole thing was _your_ idea," Trooper 2 pointed out. " _I_ wanted to search some more. So this is your fault."

Trooper 1 seemed to be determined to prove a point.

"No, I only said we should search somewhere _else_. The Princess obviously wasn't in that dump. We were wasting our time."

Those two stormtroopers continued their argument with passion, but Leia's ears tuned in to a separate discussion being held by two more soldiers.

"Are you sure you didn't leave it down at the town?" Trooper 3 asked.

"Of course I'm sure! I left it right here on the copilot's seat! Where in blazes did it go?" Trooper 4 said, his confusion evident.

Even though Leia wasn't sure what the topic of their confusion _was_ , she couldn't stop a familiar uneasiness from creeping into the back of her mind.

"What are they looking for?" Luke finally whispered. Leia offered a shrug in return.

"Hey, did either of you find my holdout blaster lying around?" Trooper 4 asked, suddenly.

Leia's heart skipped a beat. That couldn't be the same blaster Han had given her. . .could it?

Trooper 2 responded, "No, haven't seen it," and the other stormtrooper's answer was similar.

Instinctively, Leia reached down and fingered the blaster clipped to the inside of her tunic. Its presence made her feel safer, but she hoped the stormtroopers didn't pick up on what happened.

Just as Luke and Leia were about to tune out the conversation, a squeaky noise followed by a _clang_ echoed off the metallic walls. The twins froze again.

"Must be that loose pipe again. Can someone check that out? I need to set our coordinates," said a stormtrooper.

"Coordinates?" Luke whispered, thoughtful. "Doesn't that mean we're going into hyperspace?"

It was a valid point, but Leia had bigger things on her mind.

"Luke! They're _coming down here_! Hide! _Now!_ " she urged, as quietly as possible.

Once the realization kicked in, Luke was scrambling for cover, with Leia very close behind. They charged back to the small crawl-space and dove into it, not caring that their knees landed painfully on the hard metal.

Moments after both the twins were as far into the space as they could go, artificial light flooded the room. Someone had opened the hatch.

Footsteps sounded on the floor. Luke and Leia clapped a hand over each other's mouths, and Leia's free hand hovered over her blaster.

 _Please don't make me use this. . ._

Never in Leia's life had she ever shot someone, and the idea gave her chills. Obviously, she was prepared to fire if they needed to defend themselves. . .but she didn't like it. The stormtroopers were clones, and even _that_ didn't ease her conscious. They were still _people._

A few seconds later (that felt like many  
eternities), white-clad boots stepped into view. The twins didn't know which of the four stormtroopers he was, but he was dangerously close to their hiding spot, and that was what mattered. If he saw them, things wouldn't go well.

The trooper paused in front of the wall, setting down a hefty metal box full of clanging objects. When the Imperial soldier bent down to open the box, Leia realized it was full of gleaming, metal tools.

Seconds turned into minutes, and Mr. Trooper continued his work with the pipe without stumbling across the twins. As long as he didn't look in the crawl-space, it was fine.

For a while, it almost looked like they were in the clear.

Then, the stormtrooper dropped a tool.

It bounced off the floor and rolled into the crawl-space. . .right in front of Luke, who was in front of his twin. Luke and Leia's breath caught—they were more silent than they'd ever been before.

With an annoyed, almost _tired_ , groan, the soldier dropped to his hands and knees. He poked his head into the small tunnel, grabbed his tool, started backing up. . .a pause.

Then he looked right at Luke and Leia.

 **~•~**

Han was growing tired of all this "desert travel" nonsense. He silently reminded himself to never complain about cramped spaceships again. After this, he wouldn't care if he never saw another large expanse of open space again.

Nevertheless, this time there was a very important, very urgent, and very necessary excuse for the "quick" desert trip. Han was on his way to the humble home of Ben Kenobi. The old man _should_ be able to do something about this predicament. Han had his doubts ( _many_ doubts), but it was his best shot.

A while later, once Han had reached the rocky home and virtually let himself in, Old Ben emerged from a side room. A grim smile was plastered across his aged face.

Han opened his mouth to speak, but Kenobi held up a hand.

"Don't bother," the old man said. "I know why you've come."

Han blinked.

"Oh, do you? Then how about this—you tell me what's going on, and I won't blast this house to rubble."

"There will be no need for that. Luke and Leia have gone to take a crucial step towards their destiny. It is as simple as that."

"Simple? You call that _simple_?! Two kids just got trapped in an Imperial shuttle, with four stormtroopers aboard! And you say that's their _destiny_?"

"A part of it, yes."

Han threw his hands in the air, exasperated.

"I don't have time for this! The shuttle took off and they're _on_ it. What do I do?"

"You do nothing."

Han's mouth dropped open. Do _nothing_? When the twins' lives could be in danger? Han was appalled, to say the least.

But before the pilot could utter another harsh word, Kenobi sank down onto an uncomfortable-looking chair.

"I always knew this day would come," the hermit said quietly. "I just didn't think it would come so soon."

"Wha—Listen, you need to start explaining yourself. Pronto. I feel like I'm missing something here."

Kenobi nodded.

"You are. There is a great deal of information you will be told when the time is right, and the same goes for the twins. I assure you, Vader himself will not harm them. He would not. He _could not_."

"Why not? He's a cold-blooded monster, that's what he is. I wouldn't put it past him to murder—"

"Nor would I. But as I said: he will _not_ harm the twins. That is something you can be absolutely certain of."

"What about the stormtroopers?"

Kenobi looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Luke and Leia can handle themselves just fine," he finally explained. "I trust them. The only question is. . .do _you_?"

Han stuttered out an incoherent reply as he searched the ceiling for words. Finally, the young pilot said, "W—well. . .I guess. . .I guess I trust them if you do."

Obi-Wan nodded his approval and said, "Good. They have the Force with them. Trust the Force."

Han obviously was not satisfied with Kenobi's unhelpful advice, but there wasn't much that could be done about it. He would have to wait. . .and trust. Even though it was killing him.

 **~•~**

Horrifically, time seemed to slow down as the stormtrooper had a mild panic attack and tried to stand up, banging his head against the top of the small tunnel. His hand moved to the blaster attached to his belt. There were only a few seconds in which the twins could take action, and Leia took advantage of the minuscule window of time.

The princess's physical instinct took over before that of her mind, and her fingers curled around her own blaster.

In a matter of seconds, Leia grabbed the blaster, shoved Luke out of the way, aimed, and pulled the trigger. A red bolt sped out of the small gun and hit the stormtrooper dead in the chest.

A strange, surprised noise from Luke caused Leia to open her eyes, which made her realize she didn't remember closing them in the first place. A stormtrooper lay dead on the floor in front of the twins, with a black scorch mark on his chest. His blaster lay next to him.

The beginnings of a traumatized shriek started to come from Leia, but Luke clapped a hand back over her mouth.

" _Shh_!" Luke warned, gesturing to the ceiling. "They'll hear!"

Leia smacked Luke's hand away and said, "Who cares?! I just—I just _killed_ him! I _killed_ a _person_. I'm a _murderer_!"

"No, you're not. You did it out of self defense, Leia! It's fine! Besides, that was an _Imperial_ stormtrooper! You're, like, a hero now!"

A brief moment of silence.

"Have you lost your _mind_?! Luke, this is a _crisis_! An absolute _crisis_!"

"We don't have _time_ for a crisis right now! Our schedule is already full—!"

Suddenly, Luke and Leia felt the ship lurch and steadied themselves by leaning against the wall. Leia felt sick; they were in hyperspace now and were officially on their way to Vader. And Leia had just shot one of Vader's soldiers.

Luke became suddenly preoccupied with something on the floor. He crawled out of the tunnel (and over the unmoving stormtrooper), eyeing a shiny object lying against the wall. Leia began to take interest in what Luke was doing, but her body refused to move past the dead stormtrooper. It was there like a barrier, scaring her into being frozen.

Luke gasped and exclaimed, "Leia! I almost forgot we had this! It must've fallen out of your satchel when we fell down here, and you just didn't see it. Here!"

Leia fumbled to catch the silver cylinder that was thrown at her.  
It took a moment for her to remember.

"Oh! The lightsaber! Yeah, I had it in my bag—it must've fallen out. What can we do with it right now, though?"

"Well. . ."

"Before you say anything, I am _not_ climbing up there to attack the other stormtroopers with _this._ That's—that's just. . .awful."

"Who said you had to use the lightsaber? Use your blaster if it's easier."

Leia seemed appalled that Luke would mention such a thing.

"Absolutely not!" she said, backing up a few inches. "I'm already a murderer, and I don't need 'killed 4 Imperial soldiers with a gun and a laser sword' on my permanent record."

"Permanent record? Who cares about whatever that is? If we get rid of the other troopers, we can operate the ship! We could even—"

"Luke, listen," Leia interrupted. "I've had enough unhealthy adrenaline for today. If _you_ think the stormtroopers need to go, then _you_ do it. I'm staying here."

Luke considered his options. Frankly, he was tired of hiding in the bottom of the shuttle and he wasn't _about_ to turn himself in.

After a long minute of careful option-weighing, Luke said, "Deal."

Leia shook her head, as if she hadn't heard her brother.

"Excuse me, _what_?" she asked.

"I'll go up there and take care of it. Here, toss me your blaster."

"Wha—Luke! You can't! They'll see you and capture you—or they'll open fire, and no offense, but you're no match for—"

"Nah, I think I'll be fine. If there's a fight, I'll win. You know why?"

Leia rolled her eyes, getting annoyed with Luke's heroic fantasies. "Why?"

"Because I have something they don't."

"What's that?" Leia asked, very uninterested.

Luke paused for dramatic effect. Finally, he declared, "The Force!"

Leia regarded her brother with a look of pure bewilderment and disgust.

"That's not how the Force works, Laser Brain!"

But by that time, Luke was already starting up the ladder.

Part of Leia wanted to follow her twin, but the other half was common sense. So, she stayed still. If Luke wanted to go looking for trouble, that was on him.

And, consequently, Luke didn't get up two ladder rungs before disaster struck.

A figure dressed in white armor appeared at the top of the ladder, and he was pointing a blaster directly at Luke's head. Luke made no noise, but in his head, he screamed, " _LEIA_!"

Back in the crawl-space, Leia's head jerked up when she heard a panicked voice call her name. She had no way to explain it, but Leia _knew_ it was Luke. But how had he reached out to her? Leia decided to try the same thing—wait, did she know how to do that?

She closed her eyes and forced every ounce of her concentration into thinking, _Luke? Can you hear me? Say yes if you can hear me._

 _LEIA! HELP! STORMTROOPER!_ was the blaring reply. Leia covered her ears before realizing the voice was in her head and therefore could not be blocked.

 _Luke! What's wrong? Stormtrooper. . . ?_

 _There's a stormtrooper over here and he's looking at me and trying to talk to me but I'm not listening because I'm talking to you but I don't know how and I need help get over here right now I'm GONNA DIE—_

 _Luke, calm down!_ ** _Don't_** _move. I'll be right there._

Just as Luke had said, the stormtrooper was talking to Luke, harshly attempting to get the boy to say why he was in the bottom cargo hold. Of course, Luke was not listening and was focusing on not making any sudden moves or noises. His direct experience with stormtroopers was limited, and he had zero interest in being in blaster-range of one.

Unbeknownst to both Luke and the trooper, Leia had crawled out of the tunnel and was creeping along the wall that mounted the ladder. When Leia snuck into Luke's peripheral vision, he restrained the sigh of relief.

As Luke risked the quickest of glances, he noticed Leia slowly draw her blaster and put it behind her back.

 _Distract the stormtrooper_ , Leia transmitted. Luke gulped.

"Uh. . .well—Mr. Stormtrooper, Sir. . .I—I. . ."

"Who are you? What're you doing down there?" the soldier asked, not relaxing his blaster aim the slightest bit.

"Uh—Uhhh. . .I was j—just looking. . .f-for. . .umm. . ."

"Get up here! C'mon, no one has to get hurt. Come on."

Luke gave Leia a desperate look as he climbed slightly higher on the ladder to at least _seem_ cooperative.

Leia took several deep breaths.

 _This is it. It's now or never. Your brother needs help. . ._

 _Ugh. I'm gonna need_ ** _so_** _much therapy after this. . ._

Leia, clutching her blaster for dear life, took four giant steps forward, aimed up at the hatch opening—making sure to stay clear of Luke—and fired. Judging from the loud thump that sounded from above, the shot had hit its mark.

The Princess found enough time to wince and say, "They _definitely_ know we're here, now!"

"The other two stormtroopers will be here any second! Leia, climb!"

When Leia only gripped the first ladder rung and froze, her brother tried urging her on, but Leia wasn't having it. She wasn't ready for a fight and wanted no part in one. But she also knew what had to be done and where they needed to go.

Luke said, "Come on, Leia, we can do it. We've come this far. . ."

Leia looked down at him, whispering, "And we didn't come this far to _only_ come this far." Another deep breath. "Now let's do this."

With Leia in the lead, the twins scrambled up the ladder to the surface. Immediately, they were met with a flock of wild blaster bolts that barely missed Leia's head. She yelped and dove the other way.

"Hey, wait! That's the Princess!" one stormtrooper shouted over the chaos. "Hold your fire!"

Leia took a step forward, forcing Luke to follow. They agreed to speak to each other through the Force. It was safer.

 _What now?_ Leia asked.

 _We actually have an advantage here,_ Luke pointed out. _Vader's looking for you, so they can't hurt you._

 _Good point. I have an idea, but let_ ** _me_** _do the talking._

 _You don't have to tell me twice._

Leia, making sure to hand off her blaster to Luke behind her back, cleared her throat.

"Hi," she started, attempting to look regal and confident and innocent all at once.

The stormtroopers exchanged a confused look. Then they burst out laughing.

Leia was not amused.

"Excuse me? Uh. . .is that how you act around a _princess_?"

More hollow laughter.

Trooper 1 paused long enough to say, "You might be high and mighty on Alderaan, but you have no dominion over us."

"Oh?" Leia said, cocking a challenging eyebrow. "Then I guess you won't mind if I inform _Lord Vader_ that you left Tatooine without completing your mission."

The troopers looked at each other again, probably wondering how she knew they hadn't searched as much as they should have.

Trooper 2 said, "Can you. . .do that?"

"Sure I can. Isn't that where we're going? To Vader?"

Trooper 1 sneered, "You're a kid. We don't take orders from _children_. . .especially not _females_."

Leia's mouth fell open. Luke gulped.

"You're one insult away from starting a _war_!" Leia growled. She grabbed the blaster back from Luke and pointed it into the group of stormtroopers. The armored soldiers quickly drew their own weapons.

"She's armed!" one yelled. The other one (whether it was intentional or not) fired his weapon at Leia, who stumbled backwards and ducked.

While Leia had her eyes closed, she heard a _snap-hiss_ that sounded vaguely familiar. Fear kept her eyes shut, but Leia heard several other noises.

"Watch out, he has a weapon!"

"What _is_ that thing?"

A _pew pew_ sound of blaster bolts and another _hiss_.

Finally, Leia couldn't keep her eyes closed any longer. She managed a peek, and what she saw sent her to the floor.

Luke stood in front of her, his lightsaber raised in combat. The blue saber was blocking all the blaster bolts, sending a few ricocheting around the ship.

Leia's biggest concern was Luke—he was clearly using all the strength in his body to wield the Jedi weapon, and the stormtroopers knew it. A lughtsaber was not heavy, but it was his first time using one in a fight, and it was a lot of work. Luke was also obviously draining his concentration reserves in order to block the shots.

Leia had to do something—and quickly.

Since Luke was most likely doing his best to use the Force to help him focus, Leia thought it would be wise to do the same. So, she crouched down on the floor, squeezed her eyes shut, and summoned any courage and concentration she had left.

She pictured the inside of the shuttle and the struggle taking place. She imagined everything happening and the people involved.

Suddenly, a fuzzy image began to form in Leia's mind. She didn't have to imagine anymore—she could _see._ There were stormtroopers, a blurry person deflecting red bolts with a bright blue sword, and. . .

 _Hey, that's me!_

Leia could see _herself_ , curled into a ball on the blurry, gray floor.

The more she concentrated, the clearer Leia could see. It was the most complex feeling the Princess had ever felt—it was calming, it was exhilarating; it was scary, it was safe; it was enlightening, it was numbing. It was like she was suddenly part of something so much bigger than herself, but the sensation made her feel complete.

When Leia forced her eyes open, it was like seeing everything all at once. Time was slowing down and speeding up. Colors were brighter and sounds were louder. And just like that, Leia knew exactly what to do.

The Princess dug through her satchel (still secured over her shoulder) until she found the right object: the Imperial datapad she'd kept from the crate.

Then, Leia found and welcomed the new insight she was experiencing, and she rolled out from behind her brother.

Leia ran forward, ignoring the yells of protest Luke seemed to be directing towards her. The stormtroopers didn't cease their fire, and Leia had known they wouldn't. And that was just fine.

She ducked and dodged every fiery red bolt that came her way, not caring that it was utter chaos. _She_ was not in control this time. The Force was.

With inhuman lightning speed, Leia threw the datapad at the stormtroopers. It flew through the air, nearing the Imperial soldiers. Then, by some sort of Force-induced accuracy, the Princess grinded to a halt, whipped out her blaster, pulled the trigger, and shot the datapad.

A shower of crackling sparks and smoke exploded on the stormtroopers, sending them both staggering backwards. Leia, not missing the chance, fired two subsequent shots. They hit the stormtroopers straight on, and the clones fell to the ground, dead. The onslaught of blaster bolts ceased, and all was silent.

When Leia relaxed her grip on the blaster and blinked, time reeled forward again, making the world spin around the Princess. It was then that inevitable exhaustion kicked in.

Black spots appeared on Leia's vision. Her muscles ached with fatigue and her breathing came in ragged, shallow gasps. She lasted one more second before collapsing in a heap on the floor. Leia suspected Luke was in a similar situation.

 _We did it. We're almost there._

 **A/N: See, that's why it's so long—a lotta stuff to cram in here. But I hope you liked it, and hopefully it put a few things into perspective. If you have any questions, feel free to drop them in a review. For my Wattpad buddies: I'll respond in the comments—you know the drill, lolz XD**

 **For my FFN pals: I'll respond in the next chapter if I can't fix the weird PM thingy.**  
 **So. Have a wonderful day or night, and I'll see ya next time!**

 **-Lia :)**


	41. Chapter 41: Rookies

**A/N: *tumbles through doorway* I'M HERE, I'M ALIVE, I HAVE CHAPTER 41!**

 **So you probably already noticed I'm LATE again. Typical.**  
 **All the internet apologies for y'all, because I wasn't planning on having that much stuff to do over the weekend. Also typical.**

 **But never fear, chapter 41 is here! I know a certain someone who was staring daggers at the last To Be Continued (ya know who ya are, heh), which is relatable. Sorry for making you wait this long! Hope this chappie doesn't disappoint! ;)**

 **Oh, and HAPPY VALENTINES DAY for those who celebrate it! If you don't celebrate it, HAPPY TUESDAY!**

 **Now for some review responses:**

 **thechosenbibliophile: HEY, I got your name right this time! :) HAHA, yeah Han has his work cut out for him. The twins aren't easy to deal with all the time.**  
 **Vader will see the twins soon enough. . .and trust me, he's in deeper than Han is XD**

 **ShaniShinx: Whoa, thanks for the marathon read! Yeah, Vader's in for a surprise. Glad you're enjoying the story! :D**

 **changingdestiny40:Yeah, so, basically, the twins panicked, which is why those first troopers are dead now. Actually, it's better that way, because (in the long run) the stormtroopers would've just attacked them anyway, just like the ones on the main floor. Then the odds would have been a *tad* worse, so who knows—maybe it was the guidance of the Force ;)**  
 **The twins will get to Vader soon, and the shuttle is on "autopilot" sorta. It's in hyperspace, so it's on a plotted course at the moment.**  
 **AAAHHH your questions regarding their destiny are super good and valid, but I can't answer them, because that's coming up sooooon XD but I promise it'll all work out in the end, probably with an annoying To Be Continued :p**

 **SeanHicks4: hi there! Oh, wow, I didn't know that about the lightsaber! That's so cool! Thanks for telling me :) Basically, I meant Luke was having a hard time with the lightsaber because it was his first time deflecting anything actually deadly, haha. But thanks for that info—I'll make a note :D**

 **ON WITH THE CHAPTER. WHEEEEEEEE!**

Leia rolled over, subconsciously enjoying a blissful sleep on the shuttle floor. A soft humming noise was sending warm vibrations over the metallic floor, and Leia reveled in the tranquility.

The world behind the princess's eyes was dark and void of any stressful problems. It was the first decent rest Leia had gotten since she left Luke's house.

Luke, however, was now hyped with leftover adrenaline. He had woken up a while ago, but all the day's events exploded in his mind, sending him into a victorious frenzy. His thoughts, unlike Leia's, were bouncing around his mind, sending buzzes of energy through Luke's core.

 _I actually used a lightsaber and fought_ ** _stormtroopers_** _and we didn't die—ohmigosh we just_ ** _did_** _that!_

Unfortunately, Luke's uncontrollable enthusiasm was no match for Leia when she was asleep.

Luke knew he shouldn't wake Leia, especially considering the emotional and physical exhaustion that was so obviously radiating off of her. Yet, something made Luke want to celebrate with his twin over their victory. Besides, when would they get another chance to have fun after they landed the shuttle (wherever the heck they were headed)?

"Leia?" Luke whispered carefully. His sister remained dormant.

"Leia?" Nothing. "Leeeeeiiaaaa." Not any movement. "Hello? Are you alive?" Silence. "Leia. _Leia._ LEIA LEIA LEIA LEIA LEIA. TWIN. SISTER. Wake up!"

Though Leia's body was definitely asleep, her mind was functioning in full force. She could distantly make out the sound of someone calling her name. And calling again. And saying it so many times that her own _subconscious thoughts_ were beginning to get irritated. Eventually, the beautiful sleep that Leia was previously enjoying evaporated into misty frustration.

One more, "LEIA!" from Luke was the last straw. Leia forced herself awake with a noise dangerously resembling a growl. When she opened her eyes, everything flooded back into her memory in one huge tidal wave. Her senses went on overload and the room seemed to flood with blinding light.

As soon as it began, it was over. Everything faded back to normal, though normality was disappointingly dull compared to whatever enhanced sight Leia had recently experienced.

There was no time for the princess to consider the specifics of all that had happened, because Luke promptly pounced on her.

"GAH!" yelled Leia as Luke screamed, "OH MY GOSH, LEIA, WE DID IT!" in his sister's ear.

Luke's energy made Leia's head hurt. Before she could mention it, Luke (full steam ahead, per the norm) rolled off Leia, hauled her to her feet, and spun her around. Leia's vision blurred into swirls of color.

Once again, Leia didn't get the chance to react. Luke let his twin go, zipped off into the cockpit and left Leia stumbling dizzily in the hangar. When the princess found her balance again, she stormed towards the cockpit, hollering, "Luke! Get _ahold_ of yourself!"

When Leia entered the cockpit, she found Luke draped across one of the chairs, presumably asleep. Leia rolled her eyes.

 _You've gotta be kidding me._

Leia was about to get revenge on Luke by pushing him out of the chair, but a bright flash directed Leia's attention elsewhere. On the control board for the shuttle, a single button was blinking red. Leia frowned.

The flashing continued, forcing Leia to give it a closer look. She stepped around Luke's chair and peered at the button inquisitively, hoping something terrible wasn't about to happen. It was then that Leia realized it wasn't a button at all—it was a small lightbulb.

 _Doesn't red flashing usually mean danger?_

"That can't be good," Leia mumbled to herself, tapping the miniature bulb with one fingernail. She turned to look at Luke, who was still fast asleep. Maybe he would know what the flashing meant.

"Um, Luke?" she said, purposely speaking loudly.

Luke had either been in a _very_ light sleep or had faked it altogether, because he immediately opened his eyes and tumbled unceremoniously out of the chair.

"Wha—where's—but he—there was—we should—!" Luke's words were coming too fast for his brain to process. Everything came out as a choppy string of exclamations that didn't fit together or make any sense.

Leia snapped her fingers in front of her brother's face.

"Luke, hello? Snap _out_ of it!" she ordered, clearly very irritated. "What's going _on_ with you? You're all disoriented and—and _weird._ "

Luke shook his head furiously, apparently clearing his mind of whatever static was filling it.

"Huh?" Luke said, glancing around the cockpit. "Where's. . . ?"

Leia's face was modeling the look of someone on the verge of internally combusting.

"Luke, I don't know what exactly you were dreaming about, but there might be an _actual_ emergency here!"

Luke, finally appearing to be a little more in control of himself, faked composure as he half-staggered to Leia's side.

He observed the control panel. Leia waited for a reaction of some sort, but Luke just looked confused. This was not helping.

Eventually, Leia spoke up.

"Don't you see that light? It's flashing. What does the flashing mean?"

Luke tilted his head, saying, "Oh. It means. . .uh—wait, did you say _flashing_?" At that, the young boy dove right back into panic-mode and busied himself with running frantically around the cockpit and pushing buttons.

Leia watched on with a somewhat unjustified sense of amusement.

Luke paused in his panicking flurry to look at Leia.

"It means there must be a leak somewhere! And that could mean all _kinds_ of bad things for us."

". . .How bad?" Leia asked, not really expecting a comforting reply.

She didn't get one.

Apparently, the loose pipe that the stormtroopers had mentioned was actually carrying coolant through the ship. If that pipe was cracked or dislodged in any way, that fluid could leak out, therefore swamping the below-cargo-hold in flammable liquid. With the wires on the floor down there, the situation was about to go up in flames—literally.

"Well, can you fix it?" Leia inquired impatiently. Luke was good with mechanics and tools. He could fix this. . .right?

"I don't know! How can I fix it if I don't even know what's _wrong_?"

"Is it safe to climb down and check?"

"Coolant is a straight up _chemical_. So, you tell me. Does it seem that safe to you?"

"Okay. . .point taken. There has to be a way we can fix the pipe. What if the coolant isn't leaking yet. Would it be safe _then_?"

Luke shook his head. "Not if the chemicals got into the air. We could breathe it in and. . .well, I don't _actually_ know. But it wouldn't be good."

The twins debated like that for a while. Neither one could convince the other to do anything, and—since they had barely made it out of their _last_ brush with death—Luke stood firmly on his "I Want to Live" policy.

However, as always, Leia threw caution to the wind and nearly started down the ladder herself. That action sparked a predictable response from Luke.

"No, Leia, don't! You know what? Just—let me do it. Move over."

Leia scooted away from the open hatch, satisfied with her success. Luke was already lowering himself into the opening when his sister abruptly stopped him.

"Wait! What am I supposed to do up here?" Leia asked angrily. "I'm not just gonna sit here and do nothing while you're down there fixing the—"

"Just stay in the cockpit and monitor the control board, okay? Let me know if the flashing stops—I'll try to fix the leak or whatever."

"What if the flashing stops?"

"Then yell and let me know."

"What if the flashing _doesn't_ stop?"

"Um. . .wait until it stops? I don't know, just keep an eye on it."

With that, Luke swiftly descended into the lower room, leaving Leia sitting dejectedly on the floor.

Figuring that she might as well make good use of her time, Leia pushed herself to her feet and trotted back to the cockpit, where the bulb was still blinking stubbornly.

One minute turned into five, which turned into seven, and the light was flashing steadily. There had not been a signal from Luke to tell her the problem was solved, she she kept waiting.

Leia was slouched in a chair and leaning her head on her hand when something happened. A button to the left of Leia's elbow started flashing red, much like the bulb.

"Oh, _now_ what?" Leia muttered, moving to inspect the new flashing menace.

Meanwhile, Luke was standing on his tiptoes, attempting to tighten and fix a pipe that refused to stay in one place. The pipe was much higher than Luke had anticipated, so the "fixing" part was proving to be difficult.

He did notice, however, that nothing was leaking after all. The problem was his lack of sense to tell Leia, which, as you will soon find out, caused his twin sister an enormous amount of trouble.

Leia was glaring persistently at the flashing button, hoping it would just turn off if she stared at it hard enough.

"Leia!" Luke called from below.

She looked away from her one-way staring contest. "What?"

"Did it stop blinking yet?"

Leia groaned. "No!"

The constant flashing lights were slowly causing Leia's head to hurt, so she turned away and flopped down into the pilot's seat, feeling bored. This was going to take a while.

 _I can't believe we're doing this_ , Leia thought for the billionth time. No matter how hard Leia tried to wrap her head around it, the concept of the whole endeavor grew exceedingly incomprehensible. Oftentimes, the young princess would completely ignore the tingling anticipation in the back of her mind. But other times, like now, Leia noticed it.

It was a small feeling—only something barely noticeable, like a tiny breath, or the faintest of cool breezes. Yet, it was still _there._

Leia was very used to ignoring any instinctive nudges from her subconscious. In fact, she had only recently begun to acknowledge the minuscule warnings her mind often tried to give her. The "acknowledging" was easy; the "determining" was the hard part.

The tinglings, as Leia had long since learned, always meant different things. Sometimes a good thing, and sometimes a not-so-good thing. However, most of the time, it turned out to be not-so-good.

This time, though, Leia felt multiple tinglings. Actually, ever since she'd woken up from the nap after the "ship battle", everything had seemed different.

Somehow, the world was in a whole new perspective that Leia could see. Single, spread out feelings of anticipation would come, but now several separate nudges came from all directions.

Leia let her eyelids lower all the way, and the little buzzes split up where Leia could analyze them.

It didn't take much time for the Princess to figure it out: something bad _was_ about to happen. But what? The tingling grew to a buzz which grew to a pulsing, and Leia frowned with the effort she was making to figure it out.

Two seconds later, an image appeared in her mind, and Leia's eyes snapped open.

Instinct took over just in time. Leia leapt off the pilot's chair right as the front panel of the control board blew open with a cloud of smoke and sparks.

" _Luke_!" Leia shrieked, backing up on the floor.

"Did it stop flashing?" Luke hollered obliviously from below.

" _Get up here!_ " was Leia's frantic response.

The open panel allowed Leia to see a steady stream of translucent liquid flowing out of a crack in the metal and directly onto a tangle of frayed wires. Leia gave a short, panicked scream and stuck her hands under the coolant, trying to stop the liquid from meeting the wires.

Despite her efforts, the flammable fluid only splashed everywhere, drenching the front of her tunic, the ends of her hair, and the toes of her boots. It wasn't long before the floor was slick with coolant and Leia was sliding every which way.

" _LUKE!_ " Leia yelled with her eyes shut, still wasting energy trying to keep the liquid away. It was, after all, a chemical, and Leia's hands felt like they'd been mildly burned. She wondered if she should be concerned about that.

Suddenly, the flow of liquid slowed down and eventually stopped altogether.

Leia cautiously opened one eye, testing the situation. She swiped dripping coolant off one side of her face. The sole inner pipe of the control board was inactive, and the princess heard an "AH-HA!" from the lower room.

"Leia, I got it!" Luke called victoriously.

Leia opened her mouth to congratulate her brother (and also give him a piece of her mind), but an unsettling gurgle erupted from the wreckage of the control panel.

A prompt spray of liquid spurted from the pipe once more, this time hitting Leia's open mouth. It sent her scrambling away, sputtering and spitting out the bitter liquid. She coughed harshly, more disgusted than hurt.

"Never mind!" Luke yelled from below.

 **~•~**

It's been said hundreds of times, but patience was _not_ Vader's "forté". When he needed something done, he didn't possess the time to wait around for it to _get done._ Sometimes, he had discovered, if he wanted a job done well, he needed to do it himself.

Didn't he ask one of his best trooper legions to attend to the matter of Princess Leia? Where were they? What happened to slow them down?

Vader, with those thoughts tumbling around in his brain, paced the length of the command deck. The Dark Lord had just recently returned to his personal _Star_ _Destroyer_ , _The Devastator_ , to oversee preparations for a. . .well, a matter of military operations.

During the few days he was onboard the _Star_ _Destroyer_ , Vader was given plenty of time to think about recent events. He was using his unoccupied moments to sort through the conundrum of memories and pictures.

The _feeling_ that always stood out prominently, however, was of Princess Leia. It was an unnerving, inexplicably close connection Vader felt with the young Princess of Alderaan. Something that he could relate to, almost.

The longer Vader thought about it, the more furious he became. No amount of meditating or self-counseling could get the topic off his mind, though. He simply could not rest until he figured it out.

There was a familiarity radiating off of Leia's Force-signature, as if Vader had known a similar personality once before.

Wait. Oh, _wait._ Leia's _Force-signature_! Of course! Why hadn't he thought of that before?!

Vader stopped halfway through his anxious pacing. Behind his mask, the Sith lord closed his eyes, channeled all his available concentration, and stretched out his mind, ignoring the mental "red flag" that popped up.

 **~•~**

 _Leia_. _Princess Leia. Come to me, Leia. The Force is strong with you._

Leia, still fighting the coolant, suddenly looked up, searching for the source of the voice.

 _Leia. Hear me. You must find me. Leia. . ._

The Princess's eyes widened.

"Vader."

 **A/N: Okay, guys, raise your hand if you're confused. Yes, yes, alright, I have a few things to shed some light on, just so you're not totally lost.**

 **The mini battle aboard the shuttle was definitely (YEAHHH) Force-induced for Leia and Luke. Pretty much everything they did was being boosted by the Force.**

 **Luke and Leia obviously dealt with the experience in different ways. And yes, their senses are more "developed" now due to the Force as well. And Leia totally crashed on the floor from "Force exhaustion" which I guess is a thing now. For Luke, that kind of Force-using made him crazy and hyperactive. See what I mean?**  
 **It was their first times using the Force for such a big thing, so their bodies and minds just handled it in different ways.**

 **Luke was all discombobulated after Leia woke him up because he was having a very in-depth dream at the time. . .of which I cannot give you details ^_^"**  
 **The dream will come back to haunt us though, don't you worry. It's very important. Trust me XD**

 **Oh. And sorry for the cliffhanger. . .this was originally a bigger chapter, but I split it up to make things easier, haha.**

 **Review if ya want, and I'll see ya next time (and hopefully** ** _on_** **time..)! :)**

 **-Lia**


	42. Chapter 42: Out of the Frying Pan

**A/N: Before you come at me with pitchforks and torches, YES I realize I was gone for an extra week again. And I'm very very very very very sorry. . .idk, life happens. You ever notice that sometimes life just kinda flies by and you don't even notice it until you realize "OH MY GOSH, IT'S SATURDAY?!"? That's me literally all the time.**

 **Anyway, none of that matters 'cause Chapter 42 is here, albeit a little late, heh.**

 **My friends, we are drawing uncomfortably close to the climax of this story. Who remembers when I said, "This story will only be about 35 chapters long"? Yeah, that was** ** _supposed_** **to happen, but then I started adding to the prewritten story and now here we are. I REGRET NUTHIN'.**

 **Now, responding to reviews!**

 **Nobodythestormcrow: "Luke the hyperactive terror" XD best thing I've heard since forever...that actually sums up his personality really well!**  
 **Oh yeah, trust me, Vader is gonna have his hands full. His response is priceless...I can't wait till you read some of the future chapters, haha!**  
 **Forcing the prisoners to babysit the twins, you say? Not a bad idea. I'll make sure to mention it to the Dark Lord himself the next time I bump into him XD I'm sure he'd agree with ya.**  
 **OMG, BATMAN AND ROBIN ARE PRETTY MUCH VADER AND LUKE. You may have just made the best reference/observation in the whole history of the universe. It's definitely the black...**  
 **Thanks for reviewing! :)**

 **changingdestiny40: Well, all very good questions. I'll try my best to answer them -**  
 **So, the lights were flashing because the coolant *was* actually leaking - they just couldn't SEE it. It was leaking beneath the control panel, kind of dripping out of the pipe.**  
 **Yeah, Luke was down there and didn't think to say to Leia, "Hey there's not a leak down here...keep an eye out for something up there!"...so Leia was virtually unprepared for what happened. It's not really Luke's fault that there's a leak, but Leia might've been a little more ready if he would've mentioned it :p**  
 **I think that answers your third question too - yes, there was already a leak, but it wasn't where they thought it would be.**  
 **Haha, Leia should be fine. The coolant shouldn't cause any damage to Leia herself...only her stress levels :p**  
 **And yeah, Vader rarely has a "good day". His life is pretty tense as it is - I'd hate to see what happens when he meets these crazy kids XD. Thanks for the review!**

 **Alright, that about sums up the review responses!**

 **Oh, minor side note...I don't know if I already mentioned it, but my FFN account has been wonky lately and won't let me log in/respond to reviews/receive PMs. So. That's a thing. I've done everything I can at this point, but it's still being weird. I did, however, discover FFN's new APP! GUYS, I know I'm probably late in finding out about this, but if you haven't downloaded that app (and you're a member of FFN, obv) YA GOTTA DO IT. It's genius! And I've been able to access my account from there, so HUZZAH.**

 **I know if you're still reading this, you're a true pal, haha.**

 **Anywayyyy, on to chapter 42!**

 **WHEEEEEEE!**

For one moment (one fleeting, terrifying moment), all the chaos surrounding Leia faded into the background. All she could hear was the deep, blood-curdling, distant voice of Darth Vader.

 _Leia. Hear me, Leia. You must come to me. You_ ** _must_** _find me. We have much to discuss._

Then another wave of coolant splashed in Leia's face, ending the brief window of communication. As the irritating spray of coolant continued to soak Leia and her clothes, the Princess tried desperately to respond to Vader's message, or even just listen for more.

Even with all her strength, Leia couldn't hear his voice anymore. The window must have closed, and the connection had been lost.

The Princess's attention was again diverted to the leak-turned-waterfall, which was no exaggeration. Torrents of liquid were virtually _bursting_ from the pipe, but the coolant was coming out different ways. In the far left end of the pipe, liquid was spraying out of the metal, where a tiny crack had formed. Then, on the other end of the pipe, the fluid was only dripping out—though it was still at a disturbingly steady pace. Finally, coolant _gushed_ out of the pipe's middle, where the crack widened to a decent sized hole.

Leia threw her arms up in the air, accepting defeat. She tried to stand, but the slick floor brought her back down on her tailbone. It didn't help her rising anger levels.

As Leia opened her mouth to wail in frustration, a loud clatter sounded from below, followed by an emphatic, "OWWW!"

A few moments later, Luke poked his head out of the hole in the floor and surveyed Leia's situation with wide eyes.

"Leia, oh my gosh! I was wondering why the ladder was all slippery—I just fell off! What happened? Why—"

Leia growled. "I don't know, the panel just completely exploded and then the pipe had a crack but I didn't know the stuff would start leaking out and the coolant went everywhere and in my face and then all over the fl—"

"Whoa, whoa, slow down!" Luke urged, lifting his body out of the hatch. He cringed when he took notice of the steady onslaught of ship fluid squirting everywhere. A small river was beginning to form in the main hangar and the cockpit wasn't any better. Pools of coolant were swamping around the pilot and navigator's chairs.

Leia, sitting in the middle of it all, couldn't have looked worse. Her long, curly hair was wet and plastered to her face (which was streaked with some sort of black substance). Leia's still-borrowed boots had been discarded long ago, leaving her feet exposed to the slick floor. Everything else that Leia wore was saturated in coolant.

The young girl appeared to have given up, because she now sat exhaustedly on the floor, watching the chaos unfold around her. Luke would have to choose his words carefully.

"Um, okay, don't panic," he started in what he hoped was a reassuring tone, taking a few tentative steps toward his sister. When he took a good look around, Luke realized that Leia was actually _right_ to panic.

Leia had failed to notice what was happening inside the open panel (besides the leak). The explosion had done a number on the internal controls and wires, and a disturbing amount of sparks were now jumping out of the panel's innards.

"Leia, we need to get rid of this coolant–NOW!" Luke said, already searching for something to block the pipe with.

Leia followed his frantic glances to the panel and stopped short. Coolant was indeed a _flammable_ liquid. If enough sparks got into it, the coolant would ignite, turning the whole cockpit (and then some) into a lake of flames.

"Things _cannot_ get any worse," Leia groaned, hoisting herself to her feet again.

Then, inevitably, things got worse.

A sharp jolt threw the twins back down to the floor. Luke shot straight to his feet and ran to the cockpit window.

"Uh oh," he mumbled, his face unreadable.

"Now what?" Leia complained. She wasted no time in getting to her brother's side to see the problem.

At first, nothing seemed amiss. The view out the window was dark, except for the stars, which speckled the space with bright pinpoints of light.

 _Wait. Stars. Space. Not hyperspace. OH MY GOSH—_

Leia stumbled backwards several steps. "We're out of hyperspace?! What do we do? Where do we go? What's going on? Where's the ship going? How—"

Luke grabbed Leia by the shoulders.

" _STOP FREAKING OUT! THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO FREAK OUT!"_ he shouted. Leia's eyes were wider than usual, but she quieted down a little bit, deciding not to call Luke out for his irony.

"Luke, there's no hyperspace! That means we're _this_ much closer to the destination that was programmed in here! Do you have any idea how _serious_ this is?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I thought you _wanted_ to get to Vader, though."

At that comment, Leia's eyes became shifty. She was suddenly very interested in the floor.

"Yeah, I did," she said quietly. "But I don't know anymore. . ." The energy left her voice.

Luke was definitely confused. For _weeks_ , Leia's goal had been to track Vader down. Luke had just assumed it was an instinct thing—Leia felt compelled to the Dark Lord for some reason. It wasn't the most ethical issue Luke had dealt with, but he never thought she'd back out _now._ They were in far too deep to give up.

What was she _thinking_?

Luke decided to ask.

"Look, Leia, I don't know what's been going on, but I think it's high time we both. . .talk. We need to tell each other everything, otherwise this isn't gonna work. Right?"

Leia offered a hesitant nod, still focused on the floor.

"Okay," Luke continued, "then you get it. It might just be a feeling, but something tells me you're hiding some important information. And. . .I am, too. So. . .if we both say our secrets, we'll be even."

Leia frowned. "We don't have _time._ The shuttle will be arriving at its destination any minute now."

"We have time. C'mom, just trust me."

So, Luke and Leia took one last regretful look at the coolant situation and climbed down the ladder to the storage unit below.

Once they were situated cross-legged on the floor, Luke spoke up.

"I guess since this was my idea, I'll go first."

Leia didn't say anything, but her face said she agreed.

"So," Luke began, "when I woke up today after the fight with the stormtroopers. . .I was acting kinda weird. Well, at first I was actually just really full of energy or something, but I went into the cockpit and. . .I don't know. I started getting this weird feeling, like, lightheaded or something. My eyes just shut on their own and I guess I landed on the chair. But anyway, something _crazy_ happened."

When Luke didn't continue, Leia made a "go on!" motion with her hands.

Luke took a deep breath and said, "Alright, I don't know what to call it, but I saw something when I closed my eyes. I saw myself with someone, and we were sitting in. . .sand, I think. There was this shadow, and some really heavy breathing or something. The shadow kind of passed over us, almost like it was walking away from us. I felt. . .really sad, or something. I don't know how to explain it."

When Luke finished telling his sister about the vision, he noticed she was giving him a weird look. Leia appeared to be shocked. . .but about what?

"Okay, your turn," Luke said, in hopes that Leia would explain the odd facial expression.

His twin blinked a few times before giving Luke a nervous smile.

"Uhhh. . ." Leia started. "I actually kinda have a lot to say. Um, what do you want me to start with?"

Luke was caught slightly off guard by the question. He had been unaware that Leia was hiding more than one thing, so his surprise showed on his face when he responded.

"W-well, maybe just start somewhere simple?" Luke's reply sounded closer to a question, which didn't really help Leia in the Confidence Department. Even so, she gathered all her courage and took a deep breath.

"Okay, so, first of all, I—"

Leia had barely begun before she trailed off, eyes distant.

Again, a strange sensation overtook the girl, sending shivers up her spine. Time slowed to a crawl and Leia's mind filled with static. The edges of her vision blurred and became peppered with black spots.

Frightening images flashed and swirled before Leia's eyes while a deafening noise seemed to roar louder and louder.

"—okay? Leia? Leia?"

The Princess, now somehow lying on her back, gazed at the metallic ceiling as Luke called her name. His voice sounded mildly warped and far off, but the noises did their job in bringing Leia back to reality.

The ship shook again, sending Leia rolling onto her side.

Her eyes refocused on the surroundings, but there was no time to relax and figure anything out. Leia was on her feet in seconds, and by some miracle, her legs stayed steady.

Luke didn't get a chance to react properly or even blink, because his sister jumped off the floor and was scrambling up the ladder.

Leia had experienced, with the Force's assistance, another disastrous foreshadowing. Much like the infamous Toolbox Incident, Leia was fortunate enough to receive a sneak peek of what was to come. She just didn't expect it to happen so soon.

When the Princess reached the top of the ladder, she hesitated. A terrible feeling of dread crept over her and hung in the air like a fog.

 _No, wait. That's—that's actually fog!_

Leia emerged from the hidden room, right into a space full of choking smoke.

 **~•~**

Vader could feel it. She was close.

He put a stop to his habitual pacing and stared out the Star Destroyer's control room window. The princess's Force-signature was unmistakeable; Vader had never sensed anything like it. Her presence was unique, for sure. All the easier to find her with.

"My lord," a voice said, interrupting Vader's brooding. The Sith turned to address the person.

A young lieutenant, most likely newly promoted, stood a few feet away from Vader.

"Lieutenant?" Vader said, prompting the younger man to continue.

The lieutenant swallowed nervously, then took half of a step backwards to stutter out, "Y-yes, lord, a—a shuttle was s-scheduled to dock here. . .t-ten minutes ago."

"And?" Vader replied, willing himself to remain patient.

"W-well, the shuttle has not landed yet. D-do you suppose it. . .do you suppose it has been delayed somehow?"

Vader resisted the urge to respond with, "Well, _obviously_." Instead he summoned whatever endurance he had left and said, "So it would seem."

What followed was an uncomfortable silence in which the lieutenant shifted his weight from foot to foot. The absence of conversation was clearly making the young man squirm.

Finally, Darth Vader drew himself out of his thoughts long enough to realize the Imperial worker was still standing there. It made for an awkward two seconds.

"I would like to ask a favor of you," Vader said, pointing a finger at the lieutenant.

The Sith lord received a startled expression in return, but the lieutenant managed to give a curt nod.

"Yes, of course, my lord," he said.

Vader, pleased with himself, said, "I would like you to watch for this. . .missing shuttle. When it arrives, alert me at once. There will be passengers aboard the shuttle. No harm will come to them. But do _not_ allow them to escape."

"Y-yes, Lord Vader."

"That will be all, Lieutenant. As you were."

"Of course, my lord. Thank you."

The young man scurried away with the rigid posture of a man on a mission. Vader decided to let the commander-in-training revel in his glory, for it would be short-lived. He never asked lieutenants for favors.

Another slight tremor in the Force nudged Darth Vader. He almost resumed pacing, brushing off the minuscule disturbance, but then the tremor dissolved until it was raw emotion.

Vader was sensing Leia's emotions, her feelings.

The Sith had to hold himself steady when Leia's emotional onslaught crashed into him. There were so many abrupt feelings; anger, panic, worry, adrenaline, fear.

But the same word kept projecting itself in Vader's mind—a word straight from Leia's own thoughts.

 _Fire!_

 ** _~•~_**

Leia, coughing and squinting the whole time, bent over to help her brother out of the lower room. She had crawled out of the opening into a room clouded with dense smoke.

Leia could barely see two feet in front of her. Somewhere in the hangar, an alarm was going off—probably a smoke alarm of some sort. Leia was too busy to care.

"What _happened_?" Luke asked, now fully on his feet.

Leia responded hoarsely, "I don't know, it was fine a few min—WAIT! The panel!"

Despite Luke's insistent protests and objections, Leia dove into the smoke-filled area, making sure to toss Luke her satchel.

Luke, however, didn't know what to do, so he slung the leather bag over his shoulder and plunged in after Leia. He wasn't going to let her jump into a fire-filled room alone.

Not five seconds later, Luke bumped into his sister, who was holding a hand over her mouth and nose.

"I can't see anythng!" the princess explained. Her usually wide, brown eyes were narrowed to tiny slits.

From Leia's bag, Luke pulled out his inherited lightsaber and ignited it. The small space lit up, but not much.

"Well, now everything's just _blue_ and foggy!" Leia declared. "We need to put out the fire!"

"What fire?"

"The one causing all the _smoke_! It's somewhere near the control panel, but I don't know where that is."

Luke looked around hurriedly again, but eventually he grabbed Leia by the arm and pulled her with him. They stumbled out of the smoke with a collective gasp.

"What do we do?" Leia asked between deep breaths.

"I have an idea," Luke answered.

The princess was confused for a moment. Luke's gaze was focused on something to his right, so Leia followed his line of sight.

In the far corner of the hangar, the lifeless stormtroopers were still lying there. Luke seemed awfully interested in them.

"Luke," Leia said, a warning tone in her voice. "Don't even think about it."

"Oh, I'm thinking about it."

"You're crazy. Don't you _dare._ "

"I _do_ dare. What if it's the only way?"

"Nope, nope, I _refuse._ "

Too late. Luke was already carrying out his plan in the corner.

He took just enough time to turn around and flash Leia a cheeky grin.

"Besides the chemical fire and unknown destination we're headed to, how's your day going?" he asked.

Leia crossed her arms and plopped down on the floor.

"I'd rather be home with a good book."

 **A/N: Welllll, you'll never believe what's next. Just kidding. You probably have a decent idea. Luke and Leia are about to put on some stormtrooper armor, and Leia already feels awkward about it, which is completely justified, doncha think?**

 **Well, the next update should be (emphasis on** ** _should_** **) up on time, but we'll see. Because** ** _life._**

 **Hope y'all have a great day/night! And as always, feel free to drop me a review! ^_^**

 **Byeeee!**

 **-Lia :)**


	43. Chapter 43: And Into the Fire

**A/N: Okay, Star Wars EU books are officially my favorite thing ever. I've been reading them for like two years now, but my forever favorite will be** ** _The Courtship of Princess Leia._** **I definitely totally 100% recommend it if you've ever wondered what happened leading up to Han and Leia's marriage XD**

 **SO! How's everyone doing today? I'm on spring break, so I guess you could say life is good for me :p It's about TIME they let us kids out of that juvenile learning prison.**

 **Alright, so, welcome to chapter 43! This puppy just keeps going, doesn't it? Don't worry—it'll be tying up the loose ends and ending pretty quickly after these next few chapters (and this time I'm not kidding, heh). Just as a recap, Luke and Leia have stowed away ONCE MORE on an Imperial shuttle, on their way to Darth Vader's personal Star Destroyer, the** ** _Devastator._**

 **Things will pick up into a run, then a jog, then it'll slow down and we can all catch our breath, haha. Bear with me, guys.**

 **REVIEWS!**

 **changingdestiny40: Excellent point! XD the twins are certainly in over their heads. . .but so is Vader, so I'd say they're about equal. Plus, Vader is the one that'll have to deal with two Force-sensitive teenagers. I almost feel bad for the guy. . .almost.**

 **Well, yeah, you'll be able to see what she looks like in stormtrooper armor in this chapter, actually. You're right—she's pretty short. So is Luke. . .yikes. The twins will look GREAT, I'm sure ;)**

 **Luke was maybe possibly kinda sorta dreaming about Vader, which matches up pretty much PERFECTLY with the dream Leia had a while back, if you remember that. I wonder if that will be significant...*wink wink***

 **WHOA, NO, Vader won't be killing that lieutenant! He just knows that the members of lower ranks don't really have a lot of recognition and victory, so he's letting this one guy revel in his (probably only) good day :p Haha, I can see why you thought that, though XD**

 **Thanks for the review!**

 **Nobodythestormcrow: No problem! I love responding to reviewers ^_^!**

 **Ooh, what's your fanfic's name? Is that your only story, or is there more? I'd totally be willing to check your page out! I'm always looking for stuff to read, hehe XD**

 **Yeahhh. . .I'm gonna go with "maniac crazy evil overlord" Palpatine. . .but I guess we'll have to wait and see ;)**

 **Thanks so much for the review! :)**

 **Well, everybody, buckle your seatbelts.**

 **WHEEEEEEE!**

As the room continued to fill with smoke, Luke stared at the pile of shiny stormtrooper armor on the floor. He had removed it from the stormtroopers a few minutes ago while Leia yelped and covered her eyes.

"Leia, calm down," Luke had said, rolling his eyes. "It's not a big deal."

Leia gaped at her brother. "But. . .they're not. . . _decent_ ," she had replied, wincing.

Now she was facing away from the troopers, even though Luke insisted they were still wearing dark clothes that were underneath the armor.

"So," Luke began. "Here goes nothing. . ."

Leia immediately whipped around to look Luke in the eye.

"What?! You're not actually going to—"

"Leia, I already told you: I'm serious! Their masks filter out smoke, and it'll be an easy way to blend in when we land."

" _If_ we land," Leia muttered sardonically.

Luke glared at her. "Listen, just put it on. There's absolutely no reason to be worried about it."

"It's just really, really _weird_."

"No, it's only weird if you _make_ it weird!"

"It doesn't need _my_ help to be _weird_!"

"Why do you have to be difficult about everything?"

"I'm not! Luke, it's completely unnecessary. Plus, we're both _way_ too short to be stormtroopers!"

Luke gave an exasperated (and mildly offended) sigh and tossed a clunky helmet at Leia. She stumbled back as she caught it.

"Just grab the rest of the armor and _put. It. On_ ," Luke ordered, pointing to the pile.

Leia nervously shifted her gaze from the helmet in her arms to the heavy armor in the corner. She looked back to Luke, silently begging him to come up with another idea. He stood firm with a steely expression set on his face. Clearly this was going to happen.

 _Well. . .Father used to say that sometimes you have to sacrifice your dignity in order to fix the problem. I hope he wasn't kidding._

Leia pursed her lips begrudgingly and sighed, letting the helmet dangle from one hand. This time, though, the sigh had a tone of acceptance to it.

"Fine," mumbled the Princess. She dejectedly dragged her feet all the way to the corner and picked out the armor to complete the set, eyeing it with disdain the whole time. Luke watched to make sure his sister was actually complying.

Finally, her arms full of Imperial armor, Leia stood up and staggered away to the trap door opening.

"Hey, where are you going?" Luke asked.

Leia strained to look over the stack she was holding. "Down the ladder. Why?"

"Why don't you just change up here, like me?" His tone was perfectly serious, if not a little oblivious.

"Uh. . ." Leia's own tone turned awkward. "Because I'm a girl and you're a guy. Just 'cause we're twins doesn't mean I'm changing in front of you. Sorry Luke, but we're not _that_ close."

Leia stopped at the opening and dumped all the armor into the hole. It collided with the floor in a clatter, and Leia dropped down shortly after.

A few minutes later, when Luke was fully changed into the three-sizes-too-big armor, he heard a loud commotion coming from the lower room, followed by a sharp, "Why _me_?!"

More clanging sounds, then Leia poked her head up out of the opening. She didn't look happy. In fact, Leia's expression was rather murderous.

Leia's hands appeared next, then her torso, then her legs. The young girl was very obviously having a hard time coming back up the ladder.

As Leia finally dragged her body to the main floor, Luke heard her muttering, "Stupid Empire with their _stupid_ stormtroopers and their _stupid_ armor and these _stupid_ ladders. . ."

Leia's small frame was covered in the clunky white and black uniform of a stormtrooper—for her, it was about _four_ sizes too big. She held the helmet at her side and stumbled over to Luke.

"This is possibly the worst idea you've ever had. What's the _point_ of this?" Leia demanded, glaring daggers at her brother. Luke eyed Leia with caution like she was a ticking bomb.

"Um. . .how about I show you?" Luke replied, gesturing to the cockpit. Leia frowned in protest but was forced to follow Luke when he grabbed her hand and started walking.

They stopped at the edge of the smoke-filled room.

"Put your helmet on," Luke said. He demonstrated by shoving his own shiny helmet onto his head. Leia swallowed a laugh; he looked ridiculous.

"Your turn," Luke said. He made a point of staring at Leia until she groaned and put her helmet on.

Leia noticed right away that she could barely see anything through the helmet's eyeholes. The darkness threw off Leia's sense of balance and direction, which made her feel like she was in a very dark, endless box.

"Follow me," Luke said, his voice sounding muffled and slightly hollow. Leia took a few shaky steps forward, only to sway sideways and slam into the floor. She felt herself being hauled to her feet and dragged into the smoldering cockpit.

Though the eyeholes didn't allow for much of a view, Leia knew the smoke was still clouding the room. Occasionally, the Princess could see a bright spark flash through the haze, but other than that, things were mostly dark and blurry. How _did_ stormtroopers get anything done in those _helmets_?

Leia couldn't quite understand why Luke had brought her back into the cockpit, but he decided to answer her unsaid question almost right away.

"See? The helmets filter out smoke! We can find a way to put out the fire now."

The wonderful realization dawned on Leia that she could _breathe_ in the cockpit! The helmets really worked! At least they were good for something.

"How do we put out the fire?" Leia asked. "The only liquid in here is the coolant, but it's obviously _flammable_."

"Is there water anywhere?"

"I'm sure there is, but I don't feel like taking the time to search this whole ship—"

"Wait! I have an idea!"

Luke bolted from the cockpit, leaving Leia standing blindly in the smoke. She didn't even attempt to follow her brother, but he was back in seconds anyway.

"What's in your hand?" Leia inquired, squinting beneath the helmet. She could see a light-colored object in Luke's right hand, but the helmet was preventing seeing anything too clearly.

Luke didn't answer. Leia saw his hazy white form dart past her and beat the fire with whatever he was holding.  
At first, it only made the smoke spread out, but then the blazing fire dulled until it blended with the rest of the smoke.

Triumphantly, Luke bounded back to Leia and pulled off his helmet.

"Ta-da!" he exclaimed, grinning happily.

Leia waited another moment before taking off her helmet as well, noting that the smoke hadn't really cleared yet. There was no "open window" for it to escape from, so it would most likely linger for a while.

"Uh. . .what exactly were you—oh. Oh, wow," Leia said. She was staring at what Luke had used to put out the fire: her borrowed Tatooine tunic. It was now decorated with a rather large scorch mark in the center. Leia was almost upset, but it didn't actually belong to her, so she let it slide.

 _Wait a second. . ._

"Hey! What am I gonna wear when we have to take off this stormtrooper armor?" Leia asked suddenly. Luke's expression turned sheepish.

"Oh, whoops. I didn't think of that. What are you wearing under. . ." he gestured to the armor, ". . . _that_?"

"My pants from your house and a tank top. Why?"

"I don't know, at least you won't be _naked_ if we—"

"Lemme stop you right there," Leia dead-panned. "Forget it. I'm sure I'll think of something."

As the twins (waving their hands in front of their faces to help with the smoke issue) exited the compact space of the cockpit, the ship emitted a screeching sound, eventually jolting forward a few times. Leia and Luke grabbed onto the wall for support and exchanged petrified glances. They both knew without saying a word: they had arrived.

 **~•~**

Darth Vader was getting tired of waiting— _especially_ when there was absolutely nothing he could do to pass the time besides stalk around the control room and intimidate the commanders.

People on the _Devastator_ were getting as restless as Vader. They hadn't moved the ship for _days_ , and the cabin-fever had set in. Lieutenants milled around stiffly while members of higher ranks pretended to look busy. Everyone made sure to stay out of Vader's way, because they had definitely picked up on his mood.

The Dark Lord's mood could be picked up from _anyone_ who dared to be in the same vicinity as him. Vader paced back and forth in front of the main deck's large window, pausing now and then to turn his head and observe the space outside.

The ship's crew was used to seeing Vader in a _mood_ , but this particular one was new. Never before had the grand Darth Vader allowed anyone to see his anxiety for matters such as this. It came as a shock to everyone.

Vader, however, was involuntarily oblivious to the nervous stares and curious whispers. He was too busy listening. Listening for the prescence of Leia. . .and whoever was with her.

Yes, Vader felt the two Force-signatures before, on Tatooine, though he hadn't _known_ it was _two._ At the time, the impact of the presence was enough to throw Vader off track. But no more.

Not only did he intend to see the Princess of Alderaan, but also her friend. Their own signatures combined were as powerful as Vader's own. . .or, maybe he hoped they would be. All the better to exploit, one way or another.

As the minutes continued to tick by at an agonizingly slow rate, Vader suddenly felt a pulsing. His head whipped around to see out the window.

An Imperial shuttle was leisurely drifting toward the _Devastator_ , and two people were definitely aboard.

"Ready the loading dock," Vader thundered.

 **~•~**

The twins were frantic. They ran through the shuttle, making everything look as normal as humanly possible after everything that had happened. The phrase "Leave it like you found it" was proving to be difficult to achieve.

Coolant was lying in puddles everywhere, the control panel was still letting off small wisps of smoke, and the de-armored stormtroopers were also on the floor. . .not to mention the open "secret" trap-door and various tools and stormtrooper weapons scattered about.

The shuttle was a mess, Leia and Luke were wearing Imperial solider armor, and the whole fiasco was about to land on Darth Vader's ship.

 _Wow, Vader's in for the surprise of a lifetime. . ._

The chaotic shuttle continued to make the rough trip toward the Star Destroyer.

"We must be in a tractor beam!" Luke said suddenly. "No wonder it feels like an earthquake in here."

Leia paused, in the middle of shoving something into her bag, to look out the cockpit window. A humongous, grey, monster of a ship was looming in the distance, progressively becoming closer and closer. A shudder crept up Leia's spine; they were so close. Vader was on that ship. _Vader_ was on that ship. Leia almost didn't believe it.

"Uh, Leia?"

Luke was looking out the window as well, but he had a look on his face that made Leia nervous.

"Yeah?"

"What now?"

"What do you mean?"

"When we get on that ship. . .what do we do?"

"We find—"

"No, there's definitely someone on that Star Destroyer that wants us dead."

Leia's heart skipped a beat at the sudden piece of information. He had to be messing with her. Yet, his voice was kind of lacking the telltale joking tone.

"Luke, stop kidding around. This is _no time_ for jokes."

"No, I'm serious! I can already feel it!"

Leia spoke carefully. "Are you. . .one hundred percent sure?"

"I'm _positive_."

Afraid to know the answer, Leia squeaked, "Who?"

But, as the shuttle was pulled even closer to the larger ship, a sudden wave of sickening dread swept over the twins, engulfing them in fear.

The previously warm room turned ice cold; Luke put a hand to his forehead and Leia clutched her churning stomach. The entire atmosphere of the shuttle took on a dark, unsettling feeling. It was as if hate itself had polluted the air, precipitating down like venom.

At the same time, the twins knew exactly who was on that Star Destroyer. A man so wicked that the galaxy feared him and every word he spoke. A ruler so mighty that the great Darth Vader was under his control. A Sith so vile that his dark prescence could be felt over the greatest distances.

The twins whispered, "The Emperor."

 **~•~**

A few tense, quietly frantic minutes later, the shuttle was officially approaching the docking bay of the _Devastator_.

Luke and Leia were too terrified to move, scared of what awaited on that Star Destroyer.

Leia had a sudden burst of realization, which prompted her to grab Luke by the shoulders and yell, "Luke! We need to hide!"

Leia's brother agreed, and the twins scurried to the main-level cargo hold, where they had stayed the first day. The room somehow seemed even _more_ cramped than before, despite being exactly the same as they'd left it. Boxes still sat in the corners, accompanied by the rack of dangerous-looking blasters.

While Luke made sure the door closed behind them, Leia hurried to the back wall and emptied her satchel's contents on the metal floor.

Luke found Leia mumbling to herself as she took careful inventory of everything.

"Journal, check. Pen, check. Glowrod, check. Chrono, check. Tiara, check. Tools, check."

Luke asked, "Tools? What tools?"

Leia looked up from her inspection. "I found a few things onboard that might come in handy later."

The answer was vague, but Luke supposed it didn't really matter at the moment.

"Do you have the lightsaber?" Leia questioned.

"Check," Luke nodded. "Do you have your blaster?"

Leia affirmed with, "Check. Is there anything else we need?"

At that, she caught the bulky, white helmet Luke threw at her.

"You might wanna put that on," Luke advised, smiling. Leia gave a resentful groan but complied; Luke hesitated just a second before putting his helmet on as well.

"Now what? Do we just wait?" Luke inquired, crouching down next to Leia.

"I guess. They'll send a scanning team through here for sure, though. We might need to. . .improvise."

"That doesn't sound like a good thing."

"It depends. I'm pretty sure I have a plan, so just play along if anything happens. And, if things get rough, let _me_ do all the talking."

Luke thought about arguing the point, but then he knew he probably wouldn't want to deal with any questions anyway. He'd let Leia handle this one. Although, the "pretty sure" wasn't reassuring. None of it was, really.

"Oh, by the way," Leia continued, "are you _really_ sure that the Emperor wants us _dead_?"

Luke was appalled she'd even consider the question. "Of course! Didn't you feel that—that _thing_? All that darkness and _hate_?"

"Yeah, I did, how could I _not_? But how do you know that's not just his presence or something? How do you know it's how he feels about _us_?"

"I just _know_. Like, you know when you get a feeling and you just sorta _know_ , but you don't know for sure if you _know_ or if you _think_ , but you know that you know something?"

Leia stared blankly. "You lost me after 'know'."

A rumbling brought the siblings' attention back to the current circumstance. A quiet scraping of metal could be heard from somewhere below, and the sharp grind of the docking bay door told the twins that it was closing.

They were on Vader's ship.

 **~•~**

He knew as soon as they were even _remotely_ close. Leia (and someone else) was on that shuttle, and Vader's new purpose in life was to find them and bring them to the Emperor personally.

Granted, he couldn't help but feel that this task was somewhat degrading. After all, Princess Leia was still a child, only thirteen years old. How difficult could she _really_ be? Wasn't she raised in a palace, with guards and servants? Surely the Princess would be meek towards the harsher aspects of Vader's personality.

Vader had truly only met the Princess once before. While she had been no trouble then, Darth Vader wondered the _slightest_ bit if Leia Organa would be as calm now.

If anyone knew how dramatic teenagers could be, it was Vader.

"Send a team down to scan that shuttle immediately," Vader ordered, striding briskly down a hallway. "If there are any passengers, I want them _alive_ , do you understand?"

The commander nodded curtly before dashing down a different hallway to fulfill his orders.

A memory of Princess Leia's holopic flickered through Vader's mind, and he decided to explore it one more time—just for good measure before he headed off to the docking bay.

The mental image became vivid in Vader's mind. He looked at it, but then paused. Previously, Darth Vader had only been looking for a general description. . .now he was noticing more than usual.

There she was: brown, curly hair; large, dark eyes; a small figure. Regardless of the appearance of Leia in the photo (wearing a gown and adorned with a glistening tiara), Vader could see so much more than a young princess.

In that picture, Leia was smiling, but it wasn't a real smile. It was the smile of someone who would rather be _anywhere_ else. The smile of someone posing for a probably forced photograph. A smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. Her eyes. . .those were the next things Vader noticed.

Those rich, brown eyes didn't seem entirely focused on whoever was taking the picture. Leia's eyes were actually looking just _barely_ to the left. Looking at something beyond the photographer, or perhaps just focused on an entirely different reality altogether.

Vader knew that look. That was the look of someone who felt trapped in their own life. Someone who had so much spirit and potential, but was kept separated from the one thing they really wanted: freedom.

That wistful look. Yearning for a life where they could do what made them happy. Longing for something _more._

Vader knew every _detail_ of that look. In fact, he was given _years_ to properly observe and memorize the expression. Firstly, he _himself_ had practically _invented_ that particular look, and later on in life, his own wife had adopted it as well.

His wife. She and Leia looked so much alike in more ways than one. Such a resemblance just _couldn't_ be a coincidence, could it?

The Dark Lord accepted the oncoming thoughts with caution. A small idea was worming its way into his consciousness, and Vader wasn't sure if he liked it very much.

 _Could_ it be a coincidence? Leia. . .and Padmé. . .could it be? He had pondered the possibility before.

Vader, realizing with horror how close he brushed with the Light, squared his shoulders and firmly told himself to stop imagining things.

But the thought was still there, quietly taking up residence in Vader's mind.

He tried his best to lock it away and continued his walk to the docked shuttle, where he would finally find Princess Leia Organa. 

**A/N: AAAAAAND here we are again! How'd you like that chapter? Hopefully you found it entertaining...especially that bit about the twins in the armor, heh. Fun stuff XD**

 **It's time for Luke and Leia to head into the unknown. I wonder what could go wrong. . .**

 **Thanks for reading, buddeez! Leave a review letting me know whatcha think - open to constructive criticism, opinions...all that jazz.**

 **See ya next time! :)**

 **\- Lia**


	44. Chapter 44: Among Enemies

**A/N: HELLO PEEPS! Chapter 44, comin' atcha!**  
 **This one was fun to write, so feel free to laugh or grin or just shake your head in borderline amusement...it's up to you!**

 **Man, I've been SO BUSY lately. I've had an English research paper, a Bible essay, a Geography presentation (due May 2nd), studying for a minimum of 4 quizzes and one test, I've signed up to help with the school play this month, rescheduled three piano lessons and two ballet practices *catches breath*, art stuff for our Spanish classroom, AND a SOCIAL LIFE on top of it. Raise your hand if you're stressed out just from reading that. *raises hand***

 **Anywayyyy, I hope you guys like this chapter - it's got some important thingys in it that you might wanna notice. But first- REVIEWS!**

 **LPK9: Hi! Aw, thanks for checking out my story! Yeah, I definitely recommend going back and reading from Ch. 1, because you're right - it's a pretty long story XD**  
 **Aw, thank you! That means a lot :) Hope you stick around the story!**

 **changingdestiny40: Hi again! Thanks, glad you liked it! Yeah, that emperor...full of surprises. Vader might realize before, after, or not at all about the twins...you'll have to see for yourself, I guess ;)**

 **Yeah, Leia definitely wasn't having fun, and neither was Luke. Stormtrooper armor is just downright pointless - I think Vader had it made for dramatic effect XD**

 **Hey, cool idea! Unfortunately, all my chapters are prewritten, meaning I've had this story written for a while - I just go back and proofread them and add the author's note :p sorry...but that really is a good idea! I would totally consider keeping that in mind for a future chapter or a headcanon type deal...or maybe you could write a story like that! I bet you'd be able to blow it outta the water ;) Don't worry though - we'll see some reactions in a future chapter that isn't too far away ^_^**

 **Guest: Hi! Was that sarcasm I detect? :P Either way, thanks for reading! And Han shows up in this chapter, if you were actually being sarcastic XD**

 **Alright, this story shall now continue its slow descent into madness. Have fun!**

 **WHEEEEEEEEE!**

"Don't. Move," Leia ordered, placing a warning hand on Luke's shoulder. The twins, still fully clothed in Imperial stormtrooper armor, sat hunched behind some crates (in the cargo hold) that were strategically stacked high enough to hide two small people.

The shuttle was already docked inside the _Devastator_ , and the twins couldn't hear anything yet. They knew, however, that the team of scanners would show up any second.

Leia had a plan, but Luke didn't know any of the details, much less if it would work. He decided to focus on the fact that Leia actually _had_ a plan this time. It was a baby step in the right direction.

Some muffled noises broke the suspenseful silence, sending Leia's stress levels off the charts.  
Next came the tell-tale groan of the shuttle's ramp lowering, and soon enough, the twins could hear loud footsteps of several people.

Luke wasn't _exactly_ sure how Leia remained calm, but he scooted a little closer, hoping to pick up on part of her confidence. The young farm boy could hardly comprehend the magnitude of _danger_ this endeavor contained, and entering blindly into Darth Vader's lair of evil wasn't the most appealing way to spend his free time. Leia should be petrified with anxiety. . .so why wasn't she?

A quick glance at Leia told Luke that he was wrong. Leia was gnawing furiously at her bottom lip, her eyes were wide and staring blankly at the wooden crate in front of her. She had taken off the helmet again, insisting it made her feel claustrophobic.

"You good?" Luke whispered. Leia didn't quite look at him as she nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just. . .yeah. It's fine."

Luke eyed her with sympathy. Leia knew _exactly_ what she was getting herself into, including everything it would lead to in the end. But still, she kept her head up and pushed through. Luke admired her for it.

"—aboard?" someone was saying, outside the cargo hold. Leia and Luke went rigid; Leia hastily jammed her stolen helmet back on and shot to her feet, beckoning Luke to join her. He stood up with enormous amounts of caution.

The twins, by now very skilled in the art of eavesdropping, turned their trained ears to the door, listening for bits of conversations.

"We'll start from the front and make our way back," said a male voice.

 _He must be with the scanning crew._

"Why the front?" someone else questioned.

Annoyed, Man #1 replied, "Because there's likely to be more damage to the cockpit, if anything."

"Why's that?" Man #2 asked.

"Be _cause_ I _said_ so. Now get up there!"

The two men, accompanied by the clomping footsteps of perhaps two or three others, made their way past the cargo hold, fortunately not stopping to look inside.

Leia and Luke glanced at each other. They waited until a _hiss_ sounded from the other end of the shuttle—the cockpit door sliding open. It was followed by the surprised yelps of the scanning team.

Earlier, the twins had made sure to close the cockpit door, therefore trapping all the smoke inside. Now, the two teenagers bolted from the cargo hold while the Imperials were momentarily caught off-guard by the smoke.

Leia was the first one to the ramp, and Luke was mere inches behind her. Both children practically tumbled down the ramp. . .right into a crowd of stormtroopers.

The cloned Imperial soldiers gave the twins an odd look, but it only lasted a second. Since Luke and Leia had the armor and helmets on, the stormtroopers didn't detect anything too odd right away.

"Are there any life forms aboard?" a trooper asked, all business.

Luke turned to Leia, who awkwardly cleared her throat.

"Uh. . .no, no life forms," she said, attempting to speak in a lower voice. "The. . .the scanning team is still looking around. . .but, everything seems. . .um. . .ship-shape." Leia finished with an equally awkward salute.

Luke bit his tongue and swallowed the laugh that threatened to burst out.

"Uh. . .alright," said the stormtrooper, hesitantly saluting back. "Good work, soldier. Back to your post."

Leia started walking away, then halted.

"My. . .post?" she asked. "Uh. . . _I_ know where that is. . .but can you tell me? That way, I can see if _you're_ right."

The squadron leader appeared mildly impatient, and he answered, "The _command_ deck, soldier."

"And _where_ exactly is the—" Leia started, but Luke took her by the shoulders and started guiding her away.

He said, "Uh, sorry about him. He's a. . .um, stormtrooper in training. Still a little dysfunctional, if you know what I mean." Luke made a "cuckoo" motion around his head.

Leia gave the group of stormtroopers a thumbs up as she and Luke walked away. Once they reached a sleek hallway, the twins broke off into a run, stopping only when the docking bay was far enough behind them.

Luke nudged Leia's arm, whispering, "Maybe next time _you_ should let _me_ do the talking."

Leia laughed good-naturedly. "You're probably right. In my defense, I've never pretended to be a stormtrooper before."

Then, though, the siblings had to cease their chatting, because the hall was becoming more crowded.

Sharp-looking commanders and lieutenants popped up here and there, hurrying down the gleaming passageway. The most frequent hallway visitors were the stormtroopers, who made their way down the hall every few minutes—sometimes in a group, sometimes just one.

Leia was still getting used to the whole thing. She was constantly turning her head around, observing every inch of the hallway.

 _I'm in DARTH VADER'S Star Destroyer._

The Princess was having a hard time processing the adrenaline that swirled through her body. For example, the Imperials never gave the twins a second glance. Of course, it was because of the armor, but Leia's heart still jumped whenever someone looked her way. She almost expected the Imperials to suddenly notice that there were _not_ clones under that armor.

Then there was the height problem. Luke and Leia were both about two feet too short, and 4 sizes too small. The armor sat rather loosely on their bodies, sliding around and making a lot of noise. Leia, especially, felt like she was somehow _reaching up_ in order to stand in the armor. The only things that fit well were the helmets, and they definitely weren't made with convenience in mind. The twins couldn't make out details of any objects; most things just appeared as different colored blurs.

Leia, during her hallway observations, noticed a small alcove tucked in a corner. She abruptly pulled Luke into it and leaned against the wall.

"Wow," she breathed. Luke tilted his head, most likely giving her a confused look.

"What?" he asked.

"I don't know, I think I just need a minute. This is. . .a lot."

Luke nodded before giving the hallway a quick once-over. When the coast was clear, he turned back to Leia.

"Yeah," he agreed, "no kidding. By the way, where's your bag?"

Leia squinted for a moment, perplexed. Then she reached around to her back and pulled out her brown satchel. Luke blinked underneath the helmet.

"H-how. . .where?" Luke asked, peering at Leia's back. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but he'd been wrong before.

"Turns out, there's a really narrow compartment back there—it's disguised pretty well, huh? I found it when I was putting the armor on earlier," Leia explained casually.

"What? Why would there be a compartment in the armor? Especially back _there_?"

"I have no idea. Probably used for storing rations or something if the stormtroopers ever end up isolated somewhere. It seems weird, but who am I to question Imperial regulations?" Leia finished with a sarcastic eyeroll.

While her satchel was out, Leia dug through it to steal a glance at her chrono. However, as the princess was searching the bag's contents, a small object fell out and rolled across the floor. Luke picked it up, eyeing it curiously.

"You dropped this," he said. Leia looked up and frowned. She stepped forward, gingerly accepting the little item.

It was a small, grey cylinder. There were a couple tiny buttons on the outside, and something resembling a speaker was located on the top. On the side, there were some interesting white and red markings. Upon further inspection, Leia realized the markings were the remains of the Imperial insignia.

An old Imperial comlink.

"Uh. . .Luke? This isn't mine," Leia said with an unsettled expression.

"Are you sure? It came out of _your_ bag."

"What. . . ?" Leia kneeled down, carefully sorting through everything else in her satchel. It was exactly as she'd left it; nothing was missing or added.

"Where did it come from? I could've sworn this wasn't here before. . ." the princess trailed off.

Technically, that comlink could've been there for days without Leia noticing. She had only taken inventory of the things she absolutely needed; Leia hadn't bothered to go through the whole bag.

"Did you see where it was when it fell?" Leia prodded.

Luke nodded. "Yeah, that side pocket. Why?"

"You didn't put it there, right?"

"Nope. I've never owned a comlink in my life."

"So if you didn't leave it there. . .and _I_ didn't leave it there. . .who did?"

 **~•~**

Han Solo, for the millionth time that morning, blew out a bored sigh. Actually, it was perhaps more _restless_ than bored, but to Han, there was no difference. At least, not as of recently.

The young pilot had been lying there in the sand for an hour straight, and he _still_ couldn't figure out his problem. What was his problem? Well, to put things simply, the _twins_ were his greatest problem at the moment.

Han hadn't yet gone back to the Lars homestead. He wasn't scared exactly. Just. . .nervous. What would Luke's guardians say when they found out? And how could Han possibly explain it all to them?

 _Oh, hey, just so you know, your nephew and his twin sister stowed away on an Imperial shuttle. And they're on their way to Darth Vader's ship. Ya know, just sayin'._

Han visibly winced. No, he couldn't explain the twins' actions to anyone—not even himself. For now, he would have to sit tight and trust the Force. Or, that's what Ben Kenobi had told him. Personally, Han would much rather hop on the _Falcon_ and stop that shuttle in its course. Trusting in the Force wasn't helping very much.

Chewbacca roared a concerned question from beside Han.

"Yeah, pal. I'm fine. But Luke and Leia might not be. . .and that's what bugs me."

"They're perfectly alright, actually," said Ben's passive voice. Han jumped at the sound and sat up with a frustrated groan.

"How many times do I have to tell you _not_ to do that?" Han growled. Ben only smiled and took the liberty of sitting down next to the younger man.

"My apologies. But it's true. Luke and Leia are unharmed, just as I said they would be. You must trust that they know what they are doing."

"And how, pray tell, do I do that?"

"You sit, and you wait, or you busy your mind with other things. For instance, lying here in your own pathetic daydreams is not going to help the matter. Might I suggest you find a hobby or two?"

Han turned around to see if Ben was serious.

"Are you kidding me?" asked Han, shaking his head in disbelief. "There's nothing to do out here in this wasteland."

Obi-Wan chuckled. "On the contrary. What do you think Luke has done for nearly fourteen years? Sit in the sand and complain?"

Han glared at the old man. He didn't see how there could be anything to do out in the desert, besides walking around and attracting the attention of Tusken Raiders.

As Kenobi remained next to Han, the pilot intently studied the sand. Sand, everywhere. A desolate, endless, barren desert, full of nothing but the occasional homestead and dangerous desert creatures. There was no shade to be found, leaving everything and everyone exposed to the daily scorching heat of two Suns.

Han wondered how in the nine Corellian hells Luke lived on this planet for almost fourteen years, never leaving and doing the same thing pretty much every day. How could _any_ one survive on Tatooine their whole life, let alone a wanderlust teenage boy?

Instead of feeling sorry for Luke's uneventful childhood, Han Solo turned his thoughts to the twins and where they were now.

"I wonder what those kids are doing right this second," Han marveled, not particularly noticing that Kenobi was listening. "They must be on the Star Destroyer by now."

Chewie growled a question, which Han quickly denied.

"No, Chewie, you know I can't do that. That's for emergencies only," he pointed out. Yet, Han was clearly mulling over the idea a bit more than he was before. Did this technically qualify as an emergency?

When Chewbacca barked out another question, Han stopped to really think for a moment.

Suddenly, the realization dawned on him.

"Oh _Sith_ ," Han mumbled. Louder, he said, "I completely forgot to tell her!"

Obi-Wan cocked his head in mild amusement and asked, "If you don't mind my asking, what did you forget to tell who?"

Han stood abruptly and began pacing in discouraged circles around "Ben".

"Five days ago, just before we all got onto that Imperial shuttle, I put a comlink in Leia's bag. It was supposed to be a back-up plan in case we got separated, and I meant to tell her about it. I guess with everything going on. . .I-I just. . .forgot."

"And I suspect you have a connected comlink, then?" Obi-Wan asked, no evidence of surprise in his voice.

"Yeah, I'd stolen them from a couple of Imperials a few years back—don't ask—and was keeping them in case they'd ever come in handy. I swear I was gonna tell her!"

"Of course. She has the comlink, correct?"

"I think so. . .but I doubt she knows I gave it to her. Who knows what she'll do if it suddenly starts going off on Vader's ship."

"Well, my advice is to wait. Nothing can be done now. I do not recommend calling Leia unless there is a desperate emergency."

Han didn't seem to approve of that idea. He had made up his mind that it _was_ a desperate emergency—he needed to know what was going on.

"Why? If I called her now, I could find out if they're alright and where they are."

"Moments ago, you were telling your copilot that the comlink was not to be used unless there was an emergency. I think it would be wise to—"

"What if they're with Vader?!"

"Precisely! Would you want to jeopardize their safety by giving away their identities?" When Han closed his mouth and looked at his feet, Obi-Wan said, "I thought not."

But still, the idea did feel somewhat compelling to Han. Maybe he would call her. . .not now, but soon.

 **~•~**

"Should we see who it calls?" Luke asked, eyeing the comlink with obvious suspicion. He sounded like he was hoping Leia would say no.

Leia shook her head, which Luke was relieved to see. "No, definitely not. What if an Imperial answers? We'd totally blow our cover."

Luke's response was a hesitant nod of agreement.

Suddenly, Leia jumped past Luke, kicked her satchel into the alcove's corner, and leaned casually against the wall. Before Luke could ask what has gotten into her, a stormtrooper marched up to the duo, stopped, and took a closer look.

"Are you TK-110?" asked the soldier, looking at Leia's disguised form.

The Princess cleared her throat and replied, "Uh. . .TK-110? Yes, that's me! What's up—I mean, what news—I mean, uhm. . ."

The stormtrooper interrupted her with, "Right, well, our prescence has been requested by Lord Vader. He's issued a squadron to fully search the ship for Princess Organa and her accomplice."

"'Accomplice'?" Luke whispered under his breath, appalled. Leia cast him what would be a dangerous look, then turned back to the clone.

"Oh, Princess Organa? Is she on the ship? When—"

"Never mind that, just be at the control room in five minutes. Lord Vader's orders."

With that, the rigid stormtrooper strutted off down the hallway, not bothering to check if "TK-110" was following.

Leia and Luke exchanged a petrified look. Then, Leia put her satchel in its place behind her back, clipped the comlink to her belt, and started down the hallway. Luke took a second to make up his mind, but eventually he went after his sister.

The events that followed would change their lives forever. And thus began the greatest journey the twins would ever take together.

 **A/N: Ah, we meet again. What did you think? Confused yet? XD**

 **Basically, the climax of this whole shazam is closing in on us - and it only took 44 chapters! :p And how many chapters left...**

 ***checks clipboard***

 **Too many. I'll probably combine a few so things don't drag on forever, but we're finally reaching the fun part of the story! So if you've come this far, I recommend sticking around, heh.**

 **Wellllll, I think I'll leave you alone now. Once again, I hope you liked the chapter - don't forget to drop a review down below and give me your opinion XD**

 **That's all, folks! Byeeeee!**

 **-Lia :)**


	45. Chapter 45: Face to Face

**A/N: Well, a day late, but this time I have a legitimate excuse. The wifi at my house has been WEIRD lately, and for some reason, my iPod is the only device in the whole house that's picking up wifi. So here I am.**

 **Can you believe it? We're at Chapter 45!!! This story will finally reach its peak in this very chapter, and it's all loose ends from here. So if you haven't already guessed it - YES, Vader meets the twins in THIS. CHAPTER!!! *cue applause***

 **His reaction here is "passive"...but he hasn't seen what the twins have planned yet. Just you wait. You're in for a few laughs in these next couple chapters.**

 **I can't respond to reviews here because this is the only device getting wifi, and reviews are on the computer...but I'll try to respond to them as soon as possible.**

 **Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **WHEEEEEEE!**

 _This is like the extreme version of the Walk of Shame._

Leia's thoughts were drifting towards unintentionally negative places as she and her brother "marched" to their fate - or, wherever the stormtrooper was leading them.

Pictures of the Dark Lord flashed through Leia's mind, igniting a spark of fear that definitely was not welcome in Leia's mind. She fought against it, earnestly reminding herself that she was here for a reason...albeit an unknown one.

The twins continued their charade, diligently following the stormtrooper, until suddenly, both Luke and Leia halted.

The Princess put a hand to her head, remembered she was wearing a helmet, and lowered the hand. However, that didn't stop the abrupt pounding that was going on in her head. A heavy curtain of dread fell upon Leia, and she managed a glance at Luke, who looked slightly off-balance.

An idea came to Leia, so she risked trying to communicate with Luke through the Force.

 _Luke? What's going on?_

 _I_ _don't know! I feel really...cold._

 _Do you think it could be Vader?_

 _How does that make any sense?_

Leia didn't get a chance to answer Luke's question, because the stormtrooper evidently noticed he wasn't being followed anymore. He briskly turned on his heel and pointed an accusing finger at the twins.

"You two! Something the matter? Lord Vader can be _disagreeable_ when he's kept waiting."

When Luke made no move to speak, Leia took charge.

With her fake-stormtrooper-voice, Leia said, "Uh, sorry, but my friend here doesn't feel very well. Any chance we could--"

The stormtrooper rudely cut her off. "No you may not. Get moving, soldiers. We don't have all the time in the galaxy, you know!"

With that, the angry stromtrooper turned back around and resumed his purposeful walk to the control deck.

The twins exchanged tense glances, and once the Imperial solider was out of sight, Leia said, "Remember what we felt on our way here? That creepy, cold feeling?"

Luke nodded.

"Well, what if this is the same? It could mean Vader is nearby...or worse, the Emperor."

From down the hallway, the stormtrooper's voice hollered, "Get down here, NOW!!"

Leia and Luke braced themselves. They took a few cautious steps forward, found nothing wrong, and kept walking.

It wasn't until they were nearing the control deck entrance when the atmosphere turned chilling once again. Leia found it difficult to walk, as if the air had a certain thickness to it. Luke stumbled beside her, audibly groaning.

The confused twins stopped in front of the entrance, not quite sure if they should enter or not. Leia kept getting strange tingling feelings in her fingers, and Luke's breathing had quickened to the point where Leia could hear it.

Voices were having a heated discussion inside the control room, but when Leia gathered all her courage and stepped inside, the talking died immediately.

And Vader looked right at her.

Vader didn't know what he was expecting, to be honest, but it certainly was not the short, awkward-looking stormtrooper he saw a few feet away.

Another small stormtrooper curiously poked his head into the doorway, gave a short gasp, and ducked back into the hallway.

Vader didn't know what to think.

The short stormtrooper standing near the doorway had an odd aura about him, but Vader couldn't identify it at all, which was a new sensation. Vader did notice, however, that Short Stormtrooper was leaning subconsciously away from the Dark Lord. Vader decided to assume that was good.

Yet, there was something about that trooper...something so familiar, yet foreign. Vader sensed courage and determination, but also the tiniest sliver of fear, lurking under the positive emotions.

When Vader took a step closer to Short Stormtrooper, he was almost knocked backwards by the strong flood of feelings that overcame him. As Vader stumbled backwards, the trooper took an impulsive step back as well.

In the meantime, the commanders and lieutenants in the room began slowly filing out, one by one. They could tell that Vader was not happy, and when Vader wasn't happy, people tended to die. So, the Imperial officers abandoned their posts, slipping out the door. Vader either didn't notice or didn't care.

In an act of emotion, Vader issued a command to the small soldier in front of him.

"Remove your helmet."

Leia's heart was pounding so hard that she wondered if everyone else could hear it crashing against her chest.

When she'd stepped into the control room, all eyes turned to her, including Vader's.

At some point during the nerve-wracking encounter, black spots appeared across Leia's vision, and she felt like she was going to pass out. It only got worse when Vader took a step towards her.

But as soon as Vader got close to her, Leia could barely make out the image of him jerking backwards.

The silence was suffocating. Leia thought she saw some people exit the control room, but that was the least of her worries. She briefly wondered where Luke was and if he knew what was going on.

Just when the pressure reached the peak of its intensity, Vader's voice ordered, "Remove your helmet."

At first, Leia thought she'd heard something wrong, because Darth Vader's voice sounded different, somehow. When he'd spoken to her when she was younger (and through the Force, just less than an hour ago), Vader's voice had been booming and strong, with absolutely no trace of weakness.

Now, though, the Dark Lord's words came out with a slightly unsure, fearsome tone - the kind of tone one would use when speaking to, oh, say, the Emperor.

Leia wasn't sure that she liked that very much.

" _Remove_ your helmet," commanded Vader, again.

Leia, hands shaking, reached up to clutch either side of her stolen helmet. There was the smallest moment of hesitation in which Leia almost didn't take off the helmet, and that one moment was apparently enough time for Luke to barrel into the room, lightsaber drawn and ignited.

Leia jumped out of the way as Luke charged at Vader, yelling, "Leave her alone, you maniac!"

Leia, suddenly processing the events unfolding before her, reached out both arms and grabbed Luke's shoulders, when he was just inches from Vader.

Luke thrashed and swung his lightsaber wildly, trying and failing to get that much closer to the Dark Lord. Leia continued shouting protests, gripping Luke's shoulders like her life depended on it - which for all she knew, it did.

Through all this, Vader remained relatively passive. He didn't seem at all phased or even concerned, as if hostile Jedi teenagers were a regular occurrence in his Star Destroyer.

"Luke! Snap out of it!" Leia demanded, wrestling the lightsaber out of her brother's hands.

Vader suddenly took a step forward, and peered closely at the silver lightsaber handle, while Leia tried to find a way to turn the lightsaber off. Its blue blade hummed, filling Darth Vader's head with another familiar nudging.

"That lightsaber," Vader said, drawing Luke and Leia's attention to him. "Where did you get it?"

The twins looked at each other, debating whether they should tell the truth or lie. Would Vader be able to read their minds if they lied? Could he do that? Did they dare risk it?

Vader tried again. "Who _are_ you?"

Luke shrunk a little further behind Leia, who was still holding the lightsaber in a defensive position.

Leia found the button, turned the lightsaber off, handed it to Luke, and stepped forward. Vader cocked his head in a way that somehow appeared intimidating to Leia.

The Princess cleared her throat and stepped even closer, until she was standing directly in front of Vader; she could've reached out and touched him, not that she wanted to.

With every step closer that Leia got to Vader, she could feel more and more. Anger swam through Vader's mind, but he didn't seem angry. Leia detected hate, in enormous quantities. Betrayal. Sadness. Anxiousness.

Leia didn't know how she was picking up on those emotions, or how in the galaxy she had somehow wound up five inches away from the Dark Lord of the Sith. Yet, something told her that she would be fine. She'd come so far, and for what? She'd finish this if it was the last thing she'd do.

 _It probably will be, too._

So, scraping together the final fading bits of her courage, Leia yanked off her helmet and threw it to the ground. She heard Luke gasp behind her.

Even through his helmet, Vader's look of surprise was as clear as a Naboo lake.

Leia shook out her wild curls, stared directly into where she hoped Vader's eyes were (though the height difference made it difficult), and declared, "I don't know what the protocol is for revealing your secret identity, so, hi? Surprise? I'm Leia. You might recognize me as that girl you've been after for a couple of months."

Of all the things Vader had seen, all the things he'd heard, and all the things he'd done, nothing had ever been as downright shocking as one of his soldiers revealing himself to be the Royal Princess of Alderaan. Nothing.

"I'm Leia," she said. Her voice had no fear in it, no hint of wavering confidence. She stood there with her feet planted firmly on the ground, staring intensely into Vader's eyes. The Princess almost sounded...cocky.

Vader had just witnessed some of the most confusing things ever, including another short stormtrooper charging at him with a strangely familiar lightsaber. But only one word came to Vader's mind when he saw the petite, curly-haired girl.

 _Padmé._

It was undeniable. Princess Leia was practically a mirror image of the love of Vader's life. From the hair to the spark of untamed bravery in her eyes, Leia Organa was an impeccable, perfect, uncanny, mini replica of Padmé Amidala.

It was impossible.

"Princess," Vader said, attempting to conjure some level of formality. "I've been searching for you."

Leia's gaze didn't falter for a second.

"I know," she stated. "And I spent a month traveling across the galaxy to find out why. So. Why?"

At this point, Luke had composed what was left of his dignity and was watching the exchange between Leia and Vader, though Vader didn't pay him much attention due to the stormtrooper helmet still being on.

"You are strong in the Force," Vader said, expecting the Princess to be perplexed.

"Oh, yeah. I know," Leia answered. Her mouth quirked up into a half-smile that Vader couldn't help noting looked much like something he would've done as a teenager.

But Leia's response didn't quite compute. She knew? How had she found out? Did someone tell her? The Force was a complicated subject - could Leia have figured it out on her own?

Darth Vader decided he would touch on that subject again later. Instead, he pointed to the lightsaber in Luke's hand.

"That lightsaber - where did you obtain it?"

Luke held the weapon to his chest protectively.

"None of your business," said Luke.

Vader was, for the hundredth time that day, confused. The voice that came from beneath that trooper helmet definitely did not belong to a full-grown man.

Vader didn't enjoy being kept in the dark, and his mood was steadily plummeting into a pool of frustration.

Leia apparently sensed the subtle shift in Vader's demeanor, because she drove an elbow into Luke's stomach.

"Take off your helmet!" she hissed.

The stormtrooper took his helmet off as slowly as was humanly possible.

Finally, when his helmet was on the floor next to Leia's, Vader got his first official look at the boy.

Short, like Leia, and skinny. Messy blonde hair, with natural highlights from the Tatooine Suns. And shocking, electric blue eyes that sent shivers up Vader's spine.

Darth Vader's thoughts were reeling.

Just as Leia was an exact copy of Padmé, this "Luke" boy was the spitting image of what Darth Vader used to look like. Of course, he refused to even think about that name, but still. The resemblance was so exact that it would've been comical, if Vader didn't already feel like he was losing his mind.

"I _demand_ to know where you got it," Vader growled.

"Not a chance!" Luke fired back, stepping farther away.

Vader tried again, using the information that clicked into place.

"That lightsaber belongs to _me_!"

Luke and Leia froze. Then they directed their gazes to the lightsaber being safely grasped by Luke.

"No way," said Leia, at the same time that Luke laughed and declared, "Nice try."

Vader narrowed his eyes behind the monstrous helmet, wondering how exactly the situation was funny at all. How dare these two children mock him like that! They had no right to be on the ship, let alone laugh in Vader's face!

Finally out of patience, Vader, with a swift movement of his hand, used the Force to rip the lightsaber out of Luke's hands.

"Hey!" the twins chorused. Neither one had quite enough courage left to fight Vader for a laser sword, though, so Luke and Leia watched in mutual horror as Vader clipped their beloved lightsaber to his belt, alongside one that had been there already.

Vader made another quick motion with his other hand, and two Imperial stormtroopers stepped out of the shadows and each grabbed a twin by their arms.

Leia let out a little squeal while Luke went stiff as a board.

When the panic set in, both Luke and Leia put up quite the struggle, giving the stormtroopers a run for their money.

Luke managed to get his right arm free and jabbed his elbow into the soldier's ribs, but his elbow met more solid stormtrooper armor.

Leia was swinging her legs everywhere, and one of them kicked the stormtrooper squarely in the shin.

Yet, nothing the twins did helped their situation very much, and soon, they were being dragged toward the entrance.

"Hey! Not fair! Where are you taking us?" Leia yelled, still kicking and squirming.

"You will be held here on the ship until I decide what to do with you two," said Vader.

"What about the lightsaber? We want it back! It doesn't belong to you!" scolded Luke.

Leia chipped in, "Yeah! It belonged to our dad, Anakin Skywalker! The greatest Jedi who ever lived!"

At that, Vader's heart nearly stopped beating, and the world started spinning. He had to lean against the doorway for support.

 _...our dad, Anakin Skywalker!_

"Well, this is a nice change of scenery," Leia dead panned.

"It's a _prison_ cell."

"I was being _sarcastic_."

To say Project Meet Vader wasn't going well would be the understatement of the century.

It had been nearly an hour, and the twins were sitting in a bland Imperial cell.

The stormtroopers had pulled them down so many hallways and made so many turns that Leia eventually gave up on trying to memorize the layout. The twins had then been shoved hastily into the cell, and the door slid shut behind them.

The room had nothing more than a hard cot jutting out from the wall. Clearly, people were not meant to stay in such a place very long. Leia didn't expand that thought for fear of realizing something she didn't want to think about.

Luke had taken up the hobby of pacing back and forth, leaving Leia to wonder if he'd wear a hole in the sterile floor if he kept it up.

Fortunately, the stormtroopers hadn't checked the back compartment of Leia's stolen armor, so her satchel was still inside it, safe and sound.

The stormtroopers had not mentioned when or if they would be returning, but Leia didn't mind - that meant more time to plan an escape.

She couldn't believe that after everything she'd been through, the absolutely insane things she'd dealt with...heck, she'd made it inside Vader's personal Star Destroyer, and she still didn't have any answers.

She only knew what she'd suspected before: Vader was curious about her Force-sensitivity.

Darth Vader didn't even have enough decency to explain why he stole their lightsaber and claimed ownership of it.

It was infuriating.

The Princess removed her bag from the armor and dumped its contents onto the floor.

Luke heard the noise, turned to look, and asked, "What're you doing?"

"Plotting our ultimate escape from this pathetic prison."

"Oh. Okay. Have fun. If you need me, I'll be in the corner, having another existential crisis." Luke stalked over to the corner and sat down, facing the wall.

Leia ignored him and continued sorting through everything she had with her, which was: her small holdout blaster; a chrono; her tiara (which was noticeably less shiny); her journal and pen; a glowrod that would most likely not last much longer; a single black hair tie; two bobby pins; the mysterious Imperial comlink; a rock she'd found in Mos Eisley, the day she'd met Luke; her datapad; and a few tools and knick-knacks from Han's ship.

Not much to work with, but it would have to do.

Leia played with the idea of somehow using the Force to escape, but realized she didn't know how to do something like that.

From the corner, Luke mumbled, "Aren't you afraid of him?"

Leia looked up from her busywork to find Luke's back to her. He was hunched over in the corner, fiddling with the hem of his tunic.

"What?" she asked, even though she knew exactly what Luke said.

"Vader, I mean. Aren't you afraid of him?"

"Sorta," Leia admitted.

"Then what were you doing in there? You walked right up to him, practically told him off right to his face. Wasn't that scary?"

Leia thought about it for a moment.

"Uh...I don't know. Probably. I don't really remember."

Luke spun to face her.

"You don't remember? Just an hour ago, you marched right up to Vader, talked to him like a common person, and laughed at him. And you don't remember how it felt?"

Leia shook her head.

"Wow. Do you even remember _doing_ it?"

Leia shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. I was just so caught up in the moment...I didn't really realize I was being so...direct."

"Well, I think it shocked Vader."

"Really?"

"Ya think he's used to princesses talking down to him?"

"Good point."

There was an uncomfortable minute of silence. Then Luke sighed.

"I don't know, Leia. What are we doing here?"

"What do you mean?"

"I thought you had a plan. This awesome, brilliant plan. So we risk _death_ to get here, and we even got right there. Vader was _right_ in front of us. Now what? We're in a _cell_. How did this happen?"

Leia didn't have an answer for that, so she swept her belongings into a pile and crawled over to Luke's side.

"What now?" Luke asked, burying his head in his arms.

Leia stared darkly at the black wall.

"Now," she said, "it's time to show Vader not to play games with a girl who can play 'em better."

 **A/N: OOH, things are about to get REAL.**

 **Darth Vader has officially come face to face with the twins. And DANG - can no one in this fic take a HINT???**

 **I hope you liked the switching perspectives in this chapter - I was trying something a little different.**

 **As a little preview for the next chapter, we will be revisiting some old friends...**

 **LEIA'S PARENTS!! (Bail and Breha.) I won't say what will take place or anything, but it's been a WHILE since we saw them. Just a lil' somethin to look forward too _**

 **Oh, who saw the Star Wars Celebration?? I was watching live stuff and panels all weekend, haha. When Mark Hamil did his tribute to Carrie Fisher...guys. I cried. It was NOT even funny. Carrie's passing is still sorta a fresh wound for me -_- but it was beautiful, so I recommend watching it :))**

 **With that, I'll letcha get on with your week. Cheers! ;)**

 **-Lia**


	46. Chapter 46: That Escalated Quickly

**A/N: Hey there, fellas! Okay, wow, GUESS WHO ACCIDENTALLY SKIPPED A WEEK? Me, that's who! And I literally swear on this: I HAD NO IDEA! I totally lost track of the weeks and everything! Sorry guys :/**

 **But, I'm back now, with Chapter 46!**

 **Real quick, I should address a problem.**

 **I've been informed that the "publishing" thing on FFN has been weird lately, and the updates don't show up/get sent to followers...is that correct?**

 **If so, if you're reading this and haven't seen the last chapter (because that one had a publishing problem), maybe go back to, like, Chapter 44 and start reading from there, just so there isn't any confusion, haha. It's published, but I'm not sure if everyone saw it or not. I hope this one doesn't have any issues - blegh.**

 **Anyway, the twins have finally succeeded in getting to Vader...but I guess it's not going as well as they'd hoped, LOL.**

 **Find out what happens next in this one! ;)**

 **ALSO, before you start, this chapter begins somewhat differently! *applause***

 **It starts by showing you what happened after Leia ran away, so we get to see her parents' reactions and everything like that - although I'm not sure why I waited so long to mention it again, heh ^_^"**

 **If you remember, Leia ran away about a "month ago" at around midnight, and she was in her room the whole day after her conversation with Bail and Celly. Just a little refresher, hehe.**

 **BUT FIRST (you know the drill...)...REVIEWS!**

 **thechosenbibliophile: YES, I KNOW, RIGHT? Leia's a little witty thing - the sass is strong with this one, ahahaha ;)**

 **Vanessa90: There's a small chance that you'll see this, but if you do, here's what I have to say about your review. First of all, the story is *supposed* to be light and humorous :) That was my plan all along, because I want people to smile when they read it and maybe even laugh sometimes. I hope it's doing that for some people and brightening their day :) Second, I'm well aware that I'm DEFINITELY not the most experienced writer on FFN or on Wattpad - don't worry, I acknowledge that, and I'm okay with it. I'm still learning and improving at my own pace, and nobody's perfect - not even you. I find it hard to believe that you'd review on my story like that just to hurt my self esteem. In fact, I think you're a very good person at heart. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, for sure. But I think you used the wrong approach to get your opinion across :/ Sorry that I couldn't respond in a PM, but you were labeled as "guest", so I'm doing it here. That said, I still hope you have a lovely day - God bless :)**

 **Alright! Without further delay, let's hop right into it!**

 **WHEEEEEEEEEEE!**

 _~Alderaan - One month ago: the day Leia ran away~_

Morning broke, and Bail Organa was already awake. He was pacing the length of House Organa's Great Hall, officially lost in thought.

His mind replayed the conversation he'd had with his sister, yesterday.

 _Celly stopped him for the fourth time that morning, but this time, the look she gave him got the point across._

 _So, somewhat unwillingly, Bail followed his overbearing sister to the entry hallway._

 _"Bail," Celly started, in a reprimanding tone. "Just listen, please, for one moment. You haven't considered things from my point of view."_

 _Bail frowned._

 _"Actually, Celly, I believe_ ** _your_** _point of view is the_ ** _only_** _one being considered. What about Leia? What say does she have in the matter?"_

 _"Well, you know how she is. She wouldn't cooperate if her life depended on it."_

 _"What are you trying to say?"_

 _"I'm saying we should start slowly. Introduce her to some of the young men, arrange a few more meetings...and see how things play out from there."_

 _"Celly, I don't approve of this, and you know it. Leia would much rather memorize the whole history of the galaxy than formally meet suitors. Especially now. She's not yet fourteen."_

 _"I took an interest in suitors when I was twelve years old, and no later."_

 _"Yes, well. You're not Leia."_

 _"I'm very aware of that. But she's old enough now. You know it's for her own good - for the future."_

 _"Leia is not going to like this. I think it's nonsense...maybe we should wait a while."_

 _Celly rolled her eyes, a gesture most women of her position would considered inappropriate._

 _"I know you don't want her to grow up, Bail, but it was bound to happen sometime. Leia will thank me one day, you know."_

 _Then, Bail's adopted daughter, Leia, walked right into the conversation. She didn't look happy._

 _"I'll thank you for_ ** _what_** _?" Leia asked, hand on her hip._

 _And the situation had gone downhill fast. Celly made a sad attempt at explaining herself, Leia was absolutely horrified, and Bail could only watch._

 _Leia finished with frustrated words and dashed back the way she'd came, presumably to her room._

 _"I told you she wouldn't like it," Bail told his sister._

Now, Bail felt guilty for yesterday's events. He should've been a little more sensitive, and he should've explained things more clearly.

Bail wished he could somehow tell Leia that this wasn't his idea, nor did he agree with it. But Leia wasn't downstairs yet. He assumed his dramatic daughter was still asleep. Either that, or Leia was sulking in her room, which had become a regular practice once she'd hit the age of eleven.

Bail was extremely thankful that he and Breha had been given the opportunity to adopt Leia, and they both loved her very much. Yet, there had always been that nagging acknowledgment in Bail's mind, letting him know that Leia was would never really be _their_ daughter - at least, not biologically speaking.

Leia had never felt at home in the palace, she had a persistent rebellious streak, and she often spoke of leaving, to "experience whatever else is out there". Not that Bail could blame her; she was very clearly Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala's daughter.

On a regular basis, Bail was astounded by how much Leia resembled her real parents, physically and personality-wise.

She had Padmé's curly hair and petite physique. Leia also was like her mother in the way she handled difficult situations. Leia was stubborn, persistent, and ambitious.

While Leia had a physical likeness to Padmé (and shared some of her bolder traits), she had the personality of her father, Anakin.

A spitfire, with very little patience, an impulsive attitude, wanderlust desires, and rebellious tendencies. But Leia also had Anakin's heart of gold, possessing unending amounts of loyalty, compassion, and a rather amusing sense of humor.

Sometimes Bail wished Leia _wasn't_ Anakin's daughter - she'd be safer that way, after all. Because her father happened to be the Hero With No Fear/Amazing Jedi Warrior...Leia had been burdened with what most people would consider to be a special gift.

The Force.

Bail and Breha had been firmly ordered _not_ to tell Leia about her Force-sensitivity, but that plan went down the drain when Leia was very young. She managed to find out on her own that she was capable of unnatural things. Levitating objects, predetermining events, etc.

Bail let out a stressed sigh. Perhaps he'd better wake Leia up and apologize.

Just as Bail was starting for Leia's bedroom, Breha came around the corner, still in her nightgown and robe.

"Oh," she said, sounding disappointed. "Then I take it you haven't seen her today either."

Bail was momentarily confused. "Seen who?"

"Leia. She stayed upstairs all day yesterday and didn't bother to come down and eat. I'm beginning to get worried."

Bail smiled wanly. "I'm sure there's no reason to worry. Yesterday didn't start well for Leia. I was actually just on my way to check on her."

"Oh, yes, of course. I won't keep you, then."

Kissing her husband lightly on his cheek, Breha started down the hallway, leaving Bail to face the issue that was his teenage daughter.

 **~•~**

Once Bail Organa was upstairs, he made a relatively slow beeline for Leia's bedroom door, making sure to run a practice conversation through his head in case things got difficult.

Bail reached the white door and hesitatated the _slightest_ bit before knocking.

"Leia?" he called softly.

No answer.

Bail figured she was still asleep.

Nevertheless, he needed to speak with her, so he knocked again, harder.

"Leia?" he said, his voice louder.

When there was still no response, Bail assumed Leia was purposely ignoring him, and he wasn't happy about it.

"Leia, come on now. May I come in?"

Silence.

Bail tried the doorknob, and it was unlocked. That wasn't normal, and it was mildly unsettling.

He tried one more time. "Leia. I just want to talk about yesterday. I-"

During the beginning of his explanation, Bail leaned ever so lightly on Leia's door, and the door swung open, sending Bail stumbling into Leia's bedroom.

Her _empty_ bedroom.

A bubble of panic rose in Bail's chest as he yanked Leia's blanket off her bed, revealing a pile of pillows underneath.

He ran to her closet and opened the door with unnecessary force, but saw nothing but clothes and shoes.

That bubble of fear exploded, and Bail dashed haphazardly around the room, looking for any sign that Leia was there.

He finally came to her balcony doors. One of the doors was ajar, letting in the cool breeze of an Alderaan morning. But this time, the breeze seemed less tranquil and more bone-chilling.

Bail quickly opened the door all the way and ran out onto the balcony. He gripped the rail, gazing down into his wife's garden full of blossoming flowers and spiraling vines.

The serene garden looked much too picturesque for such a dire situation.

Bail yelled, "Leia!" out over the garden, hoping he would get some sort of reply.

He didn't get one.

So, willing his heart to calm down, Bail Organa bolted out the balcony doors and out of Leia's room.

He practically flew down the stairs, shouting, "Breha! Breha, come quickly!"

She appeared at the base of the gleaming staircase. Her expression held a tinge of concern.

"Yes, dear? What is it?"

Bail descended the last few steps in a rush, then nearly collapsed in Breha's arms. He gripped onto her shoulders for balance.

"Bail, what is it? What's the matter?" Breha asked, panic lacing her sweet voice.

Bail took several deep breathes before saying, "It's Leia, dear. She's missing."

That day, the palace was more chaotic that it had ever been before.

The Princess was gone, and no one knew what to do.

As soon as Breha heard the news, every ounce of color had drained from her face, leaving only a countenance of pure terror. Their only daughter was missing.

Servants scurried to and fro, making sure that everyone was alerted of the horrible news.

People fled the palace, running out into the garden to search for the Princess. Other servants were assigned to scouring every inch of the town for _any_ clue as to where Leia had gone.

Bail and Breha handled the situation in different ways.

While Breha broke down and shut herself in the bedroom, Bail couldn't _bear_ to be in the palace. He felt as if the walls were steadily closing in on him.

So, Bail Organa retreated to the one place he knew he could find some peace amidst all the hurt.

The hilltop pavilion.

He slowly made his way up the grassy hill, momentarily reveling in the warm sunlight that bathed him in a comforting glow.

When he reached the pavilion, Bail paced to the rail. He gazed out at the city, carefully examining the people walking around.

It was only a few seconds before the desperate awareness of reality set in.

Bail didn't know why the realization was deciding to set in just then. Perhaps a part of him was still hoping this was all a joke. Or a very bad dream. Maybe Leia would turn up any minute now, revealing that she'd been hiding all along.

Leia was his daughter, unbiological relationship be darned. But there was another reason that panic filled Bail's heart.

If Leia was out there somewhere, outside the protection of her family, she was exposed to the darker side of the galaxy - the Empire.

Bail prayed that Leia was found before it was too late.

 _~Present day - Darth Vader's Star Destroyer~_

Leia was glaring furiously at her pile of belongings in the Imperial cell - just as she had been for the past forty minutes.

She'd stayed up practically all night trying to devise a plan of escape, but everything she came up with was either too dangerous, too complicated, or just downright stupid. So, Leia had resorted to studying the objects on the floor, hoping a decent plan would magically present itself.

Luke, at least, had managed to get some sleep. He seemed to have moved out of his "Hopeless Situation" mood and was progressing (predictably) into "Restored Confidence" mode.

He was, however, running out of things to do - not that there was much to do in the cell in the first place. For this reason, Luke crawled over to Leia, eyeing her with interest.

It was a few minutes before she even realized she was being watched.

"What?" Leia finally said, looking up at Luke with irritated shock,

"Oh, nothing."

Leia looked away again, and Luke continued his staring.

He noticed the way Leia chewed on her lower lip when she was thinking and drummed her fingers on the sleek floor.

After a few more minutes, Luke saw that Leia didn't appear to be looking _at_ her belongings, but _through_ them. He supposed she had spaced out again.

He cleared his throat, snapping Leia out of her thought bubble.

"Yes?" she asked, shifting her curled-up position to face him.

"Um, I was just wondering if...if I could..."

"If you could _what_?"

"Can I...would you mind if I wrote in your journal again?"

Leia opened her mouth to respond, but then closed it. She got an ironic look on her face for a moment before leaning closer.

" _Sure_ you can," she said, smiling.

Luke gave her a nervous look.

"Why are you smiling like that?" Luke inquired, fidgeting uncomfortably.

"No reason."

"Leia, come on."

"Well...I just find it interesting how you've... _developed_ since we first met."

"What? What's that supposed to mean?"

Leia laughed. "You used to sit behind me, watching _me_ write. And I seem to remember you being curious about why I wrote in it so much."

"Why is that funny?"

"Because now _you're_ the one who wants to journal. You even admitted that it helps you sort out your thoughts."

Luke matched Leia's humorous grin.

"Ohhh," he said. "Well, yeah, I mean, those journal things are pretty handy."

The twins shared a moment of laughter until Luke asked, "How come you don't journal anymore?"

Leia's smile faded, but she didn't answer. Instead, she slid her brown journal across the floor. It stopped right in front of Luke, seemingly inviting him to write in it.

Luke decided not to pry at Leia's tense feeling towards her journal anymore. He picked up the journal, reached over to grab the pen, and returned to his corner to begin an entry.

 **Diary of Leia Organa - Luke Edition!**

 _I'm back, but not necessarily better than ever. There has been an interesting development in our plan to find Vader. And by "development", I mean "BIG FAT WHOPPING FATAL PROBLEM"._

 _Yeah, we're sitting in an Imperial holding cell. Lemme give ya the quick update on our...ahem...adventure._

 _Basically, after putting up with some VERY annoying coolant issues on a stolen shuttle, Leia and I landed on_ ** _The Devastator_** _. That's Vader's personal Star Destroyer - I know because my uncle used to mention it._

 _It was not going well from the start, if I'm being honest. We had to wear stormtrooper armor (we still are), straight up LIE to soldiers' faces about who we were, and it wasn't long before "our prescence was requested" in the control room._

 _So, Leia and I followed a super rude stormtrooper to the control deck, and VADER WAS IN THERE. Leia totally waltzed right in, like it was no big deal, but I stopped and stayed outside the door._

 _But when I heard Vader tell Leia to take off her helmet, I really panicked and ran right into the room, with our lightsaber on._

 _I wasn't really...well I guess I didn't have much of a plan, but Leia stopped me before I could chop Vader's head right off - and I would've, too. I'm not 100% sure what came over me, but I was super confident for a whole 12 seconds._

 _But now here we are. Vader confiscated our lightsaber, claimed it as his own, and had the stormtroopers drag us to this bare cell. That was yesterday - at least, I think it was. I slept at some point, so we must have gone through a night. I don't think Leia slept very much, if at all._

 _Speaking of Leia, she's sitting across the room right now on the floor. All her stuff is dumped out._

 _She said she's trying to come up with a plan to get us outta here - and, knowing her, she'll probably make a pit stop at Vader Street, if you know what I mean._

 _I don't have very high expectations for whatever she decides to do. Leia can be amazingly smart and clever...but we're on an Imperial Star Destroyer this time, not on Tatooine. I have a feeling that Vader or the EMPEROR will put a stop to anything we try to do._

From Leia's direction, there came an ecstatic, "I'VE GOT IT!"

Luke turned back to the journal to write, _But, then again, I've been wrong before. -Luke_

He closed the small book and set it carefully beside him, turning his attention to his sister.

She was still shouting victorious comments to no one in particular, so Luke crawled over to her and said, "Okay, so what's our exit strategy?"

"Huh?" Leia gave him an odd look.

"Oh my gosh, we're _for sure_ gonna die now," Luke concluded, throwing his hands in the air.

Leia rushed to make amends. "No, I have a plan this time. I just wouldn't call it particularly...strategic."

"Then what exactly _is_ it?"

"Uh...maybe...risky."

"That's just another way to say 'stupid', isn't it?"

Leia offered an innocent shrug.

"Ugh, fine," Luke said. "I think I've just accepted the fact that we'll never do _anything_ the normal way. Ever. Again."

"Good job."

"But don't you think it's about time we _actually_ had a-"

Luke was abruptly cut off by a shrill beep.

The twins scrambled to their feet, searching the cell for the source of the noise.

 _BEEP!_

Luke checked under the metal bench/bunk while Leia pounced on her pile of trinkets.

 _BEEP! BEEP!_

"What is that _noise_?" Leia growled. She kept digging through her pile, angrily tossing items aside. She threw one of Han's tools behind her and it just barely missed Luke's head.

 _BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

Finally, Leia shot to her feet, clutching the black Imperial comlink.

"Luke!" she exclaimed. "It's the comm! Someone's calling it!"

Luke rushed over and snatched the comlink, holding it at arm's length as if he thought it was an animal that might bite him.

"Do we answer it?" Luke asked.

" _Answer_ it?! What if it's someone from the Empire?"

"Who would be calling it? We're basically at the _heart_ of the Empire _right now_."

"But-"

"Just answer it!"

Luke tossed the comlink back to Leia, who fumbled with it a moment before catching the device and giving it a panicked look.

"What do I do?" the Princess asked, trying (and failing) to find some kind of reasoning to hold on to.

"For Siths' sake, ANSWER IT!"

Startled, Leia pushed a button.

A crackly noise filled the air, and it took Leia a second to realize it was coming from the comm.

The twins exchanged a quick glance.

"Uh...hello?" Leia said into the tiny speaker.

"That was the most awkward greeting I've ever heard," Luke whispered.

Leia ignored him and tried again.

"Anyone there?" she asked. "Hello?"

Then, from the other end, "Leia? Is that you?!"

The Princess's heart dropped in her chest, but she managed to croak out one word.

"Han?"

 **A/N: Back so soon?**

 **Welp, I hope you enjoyed that chapter and the Organas' reactions to their daughter being missing. I actually kinda feel bad for them...don't worry - they'll be seeing her soon again, haha.**

 **Sorry I had to respond to a "hate review" or "flame" up there in the first note, but I felt that the comments she made were inappropriate and somewhat rude, and I couldn't respond privately. But that's just how I deal with hate, and maybe it'll encourage some of you as well :) I'm glad you guys like the story, anyway, haha XD**

 **School gets out on May 25, so then I'll be updating regularly again, if the story isn't finished by then. I still have some chapters to upload, but it'll be done soon...**

 **Bittersweet XD**

 **So. I hope you guys/gals all have a fabulous day, and thanks so much for reading! I hope you can see this update alright, too.**

 **See ya next time!**

 **\- Lia :)**


	47. Chapter 47: Breaking Out

**A/N: WHOOOOAAAA, GUESS WHO IT IS?!**

 **Guys, I am SO sorry. I went AWOL for like...3? 4 weeks? THAT IS INSANE. With finals and friend situations and summer, life has been crazier than usual and I just sorta went MIA, which was NOT intentional.**

 **Also, there was a very annoying glitch in the FFN system that didn't notify readers when authors updated (the problem is fixed now). So, you may not have even seen the last few chapters. If you think you might be lost, I *strongly* recommend going back a few chapters (like maybe 3) and reading from there. I just don't want anyone to be all like, "Uh okay so when exactly did all this happen?" Hehe XD**

 **I'm also extremely tired right now and am trying to get this chapter up ASAP (aka RIGHT NOW)...so I'm actually gonna be *wild* and skip proofreading on this one ^_^" so I apologize in advance for any sneaky typos or stuff like that. Sorry guys XP**

 **Now. Without further delay. Here's the chapter!**

 **WHEEEEEEEE!**

Darth Vader was still having trouble comprehending the crucial piece of news he had received a day ago.

The information was swirling around in his head, making even the simplest of actions seem like climbing a mountain. Easy things like walking, standing, and even breathing (though the last one was already a problem anyway) became difficult and tedious. Vader often had to remind himself that he was alive - he was _not_ dreaming.

But those two children had said Anakin Skywalker - Vader shuddered at the thought of the name - was their _father._ Not a friend of their father, or someone who _knew_ their father.

 _Their. Father._

Bursts of emotion flooded Vader's head, clouding his head and overwhelming his senses. They were all foreign emotions - or, they had been, as of the past 13-or-so years.

Nevertheless, Darth Vader struggled to process and pinpoint all the different bits of feelings. He could recognize a few, like surprise, respect, and some sort of glee. But there was one that Vader felt, recognized, and hastily shoved away. That emotion wasn't welcome in the mind of the Dark Lord. Never again.

 _Love._

Vader frowned, practically feeling the sharp claws of the Dark Side tearing away at the feeling. They seemed to be partially succeeding, at least.

But he couldn't help acknowledging that Leia and that boy were his _children._ Or were they?

Vader speculated that the kids may have been bluffing to get their lightsaber back...but they seemed serious. Besides, how would they have heard about Anakin Skywalker? That name wasn't one they could dream up on their own, surely.

Who told them about Anakin? Their parents? No, it couldn't be. Leia lived on Alderaan, and the boy was brought up on Tatooine.

And that was an entirely _different_ matter of complexity. If the children were raised on completely different planets (lightyears away from each other, no less), had two separate families, and looked nothing alike, how could they be siblings? And were they _just_ siblings? Vader remembered the intense presence of the Force around them. Usually, normal siblings didn't have that kind of a connection _or_ strength in the Force.

What was that boy's name again? Vader felt like he'd known at some point, but the name had slipped his mind already.

Darth Vader couldn't bear the questions any longer, and there was only one way to find answers.

 **~•~**

"Han? Hello? Han, is that you?" Leia half-shouted into the comlink. "Han? Can you hear me?"

A rough reply tried to make its way through bursts of static, but Leia couldn't make it out.

"Lei-at-enobi-are-kay?"

"What?" Leia grimaced at the comlink as it crackled.

"-ere-on-ader-away?" Han was clearly asking a question, but Leia and Luke could only helplessly repeat that they couldn't hear him.

Finally, Leia said, "Han, stop! Let me just tell you what's happening!"

The static continued, but the broken voice ceased, apparently listening for Leia to go on.

The Princess cleared her throat, unsure of a good way to break the news.

"So," she began, "we found Vader. But before you say anything, just know that we're fine and...well, yeah, we're fine. Luke and I met Vader face to face, and he was _so kind_ as to place us in a...cell."

Han erupted into peals of scolding, and Leia got the gist, even through all the static.

"Calm down!" Luke spoke up. "Vader didn't even seem interested in us at all. He'll probably let us out in no time."

"Yeah," Leia added, "he recognized me, but we barely spoke. He stole our lightsaber though. And he mentioned my Force-sensitivity."

"But everything is under control."

The comlink was silent for a moment. Then, after some more static and a horrible whining sound, Han's voice came clearly (and rather loudly) through the small device.

"YOU GUYS HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'VE DONE!" Han yelled, sending Luke and Leia back a few feet. "You've gotten yourselves inside the _very core_ of the most evil organization in the GALAXY!"

"We know," the twins chorused.

"OF COURSE YOU DO! And you don't have a _problem_ with it?! You both could be killed in mere _minutes_ if Vader set his mind to it!"

"Listen," Leia started, her tone turning serious. "I, for one, completely understand the risk right now. I chose to do this because I need answers. I can't live the rest of my life not knowing why the Dark Lord was looking for _me._ "

Han was not impressed. "Well, there are much _easier_ ways to get answers, Your Highness! You don't always have to go risk _death_ to get what you want!"

"I'm not risking death! Vader wouldn't hurt us - I know that for sure."

"And _how_ would you know?"

Leia gave Luke a desperate look, but he was staring towards the door. So, the Princess took a deep breath and said in her most diplomatic voice, "Han, I refuse to leave this ship without answers. What's done cannot be undone, so I expect you to _end it_ with the reprimanding, as if you know what's best for _me._ I didn't choose the life I was given, but I _can_ choose the actions I take. I just need you to trust me. If you can't do that one thing, I'm sorry.

"I get that you're worried, and I'm sorry for scaring you and taking off in that shuttle - though that part wasn't our fault. We're doing our best to make safe decisions here, but I believe Vader has no evil intentions towards me and Luke. Now. Do _not_ come looking for us. Don't even _think_ about it. Luke and I are quite capable of handling this ourselves. Thanks for your concern...and...see you soon."

Before Han could even reply, Leia turned the comlink off, therefore ending the call and severing the connection with Han.

She turned to glance at Luke and saw him still looking towards the door. It was beginning to make Leia nervous.

"Uh...Luke? Did you hear anything I just told Han?"

He nodded but didn't turn around.

"Um...so...is everything okay?"

Luke narrowed his eyes the slightest bit.

Finally, he whispered, "Someone's coming."

Leia, clearly startled by this information, tuned her focus on the hallway outside the cell.

Now that Luke had mentioned it, she _did_ feel a little uneasy. Someone was definitely coming to their cell, and not someone radiating good vibes.

Luke scrambled to cram his borrowed stormtrooper armor under the bench (he had taken it off during their first hour in the cell). Since Leia had replaced her items into her satchel, she shoved that into the armor compartment and hurriedly sat on the metal bench, hoping she looked natural.

Just as Luke sat down in the farthest corner of the cell, the door slid open with an ominous _hiss._

There in the doorway stood Darth Vader - but he was alone. There were no droids, no stormtroopers, and no officers. Just Vader.

And somehow, that made the situation even more stressful.

The Dark Lord stood there for several seconds, staring intensely at the twins. No one spoke - Leia was not even sure she remembered how to breathe.

Instead of speaking up (because the idea alone was enough to make her stomach churn), Leia focused on slowing her racing heart down enough to sense Vader's feelings - as risky as it sounded.

Ironically, the Princess barely had to try. As soon as Leia relaxed and got her mind to stop spinning, Vader's emotions seemed to explode from his cloaked body, quickly crowding Leia's head with mental clutter.

She detected the same emotions as always: anger, hate, stress...

But wait. There was something else, this time. Something foreign - at least, Leia had never felt it in Vader before.

She couldn't place it. It was something unique in its context, yet it triggered another sensation in Leia's heart.

Her body stiffened. That new emotion was _entirely_ different. It was _positive_.

Vader suddenly turned his head toward Leia, as if he could feel her picking up on his own emotions. She didn't like it very much.

"Princess," said Vader, taking a small step into the cell. "I fear we have much to discuss."

The twins exchanged their trademark "Anxiety Glance", but Leia kept a straight face.

She finally choked out, "If you say so."

Leia had expected Vader to drag her away to some other terrifying place, but he simply palmed the door shut, took another step closer, and folded his hands behind his back.

Another uncomfortable shroud of silence fell upon the trio. Leia kept every one of her muscles perfectly still, not daring to fidget or squirm. Luke, on the other hand, looked like he wanted to throw up.

Leia briefly wondered if Luke could feel Vader's new emotion, too.

"I understand you are familiar with the Force," said Vader in his deep, resonating voice.

"Uh-huh," Leia replied, not trusting herself to say more.

"If, then, you are familiar with the Force, _how_ familiar are you?"

"Uh...I...just a little bit, I guess."

"I see. Is that why your Force-signature is felt through this entire room and the hallway beyond it?

"I-well, I didn't know that. I don't even really know what a Force-signature is."

Vader then turned to Luke.

"And you," said Vader. "You are just as strong. Forgive me for not recalling your name."

"I'm-I'm Luke," said the boy. "Luke Skywalker."

Much to the surprise of the twins, Darth Vader's right hand went up to clutch his stomach. In the next sentence he spoke, all the confidence and formality had fled Vader's tone.

"And, may I ask how you two came to know each other? Surely it could not have occurred by mere chance."

The twins looked an one another yet again, trying to figure out whether they should lie or tell the truth. It was quite difficult to communicate silently when they also didn't want to risk Vader intruding on their mental conversation.

"Well, um...we're really good friends," said Leia, doing her best to make some sort of eye contact.

"It is my advice that you tell me the truth, Princess," Vader warned. The twins' hopes of a "Get Out of Questioning Free" card vanished.

When Leia chose to stay silent, Luke mustered every iota of his courage and stood to his feet. He walked over to Leia and stood in front of her. Then, Luke said, "That _is_ the truth...there's just a little more to it than that."

If it was possible, Vader would've raised a sarcastic eyebrow. "Care to elaborate?" he asked,

"Actually, we're siblings." Luke conveniently avoided mentioning the word "twins", but it apparently didn't matter. Vader figured it out immediately.

"Twins," Vader said, in the closest thing he could get to a whisper. "It explains everything."

"What explains what?" Leia asked, not bothering with respect.

At this point, Darth Vader was essentially talking to himself more than anyone, but he didn't seem to notice or care.

"Twins. There were _two._ Of course! Their combined signatures are nearly overpowering. _Only_ twins would possess that type of bond. Remarkable."

By now, Luke and Leia were thoroughly lost. Vader's words made little sense, and Leia couldn't believe he'd deducted all of that on his own. What exactly was he talking about?

Evidently, Luke thought it was safe to communicate now, because his thoughts entered Leia's mind.

 _D'you think he's finally gone off the deep end?_ Luke asked.

Leia didn't look at him, but she replied with, _Don't be absurd, Luke. I think he's just as confused as we are._

Leia could feel Luke's skeptical gaze from his position in front of her. Yet, there _did_ seem to be short waves of confusion rolling off the Dark Lord. It was obvious that he was perplexed - but about _what_?

"Are you two _not_ biological twins?" Vader asked, abruptly. The twins didn't remember him asking a question, but they offered a simultaneous (though reluctant) nod.

"Yes," said Vader, "of course. But...Princess, it is my understanding that you were born and raised on Alderaan. And Luke. You are from a certain _desert_ planet, are you not?"

"That's right," said Leia, at the same time that Luke remarked, "Last time I checked."

Darth Vader raised his hand, as if he was going to say something else. However, his hand paused in mid-air, lowered, and Vader's monotonous breathing became the only sound in the room.

Then, without any warning whatsoever, Vader opened the heavy door, spun on his heel, and stalked out of the cell, closing the door behind him.  
But, as Vader was turning away, Leia thought she heard him mutter, "...so much like them."

 **~•~**

Some time later, Leia pulled out her chrono and saw that another hour had passed since Darth Vader's awkward visit.

She finally made a compromise with herself and ultimately decided to put the matter aside for the time being. Right now, they had to focus on escaping the cell - maybe _then_ Leia could get the information she needed.

"Are you gonna take your armor off?" Luke asked from his corner, where he was scrolling idly through Leia's datapad.

"No, I can't."

"Sure you can."

"No, I _physically_ can't. You used my tunic to put out a chemical fire, remember?"

Luke failed at hiding his grin. "Oh. Yep."

"Besides, I can find different clothes once we get outta here. And trust me, we _are_ getting out. _Today._ "

Setting down the datapad, Luke answered, "By the way, you never really told me what your big plan actually _is._ Will that be a problem?"

"No, I don't think so. If you're good at causing chaos and following impulses, then you're fine."

Luke opened his mouth to reply, then closed it. He gave himself a minute to wrap his head around the words he just heard exit his sister's mouth.

"Uh...please don't tell me that's your plan."

Leia looked appalled that he'd think otherwise.

"Of _course_ it's my plan! I know it seems illogical, but every time we've tried to plan something so far, it backfired. So, if our plan is to _not plan_ , it has to succeed!"

"Wait, so if our plan is to not plan, isn't that technically a plan that could fail because we're planning a plan where we don't plan?"

"Ye-wait what?"

Luke laughed and waved it away with his hand, picking up the datapad again.

"I still can't believe you disconnected Han's call. He seemed pretty worried about us," Luke said reproachfully.

The Princess only gave her brother a fiery glare in response, and it was enough for Luke to raise his hands in defeat.

"Okay, fine. If you don't want Han to help, you're big idea better work. What do we do first?"

An amused look flitted across Leia's face for a split second - it was gone as soon as it had come.

"Well," Leia explained, "it might be more like _tonight_ that we escape. If we want this to work, we're gonna need to know a _liiiiiitle_ more about our...gift."

Luke's interest being peaked, he twirled the datapad in his fingers, saying, "Should we search more on the Holonet? We've tried meditation, we can talk through our thoughts, we can feel Vader's emotions...what else is there?"

"Obviously a lot. Jedi were super powerful, Luke. They could _control_ people with their minds, jump really high, open doors with no key...they were amazing."

"So...what are you saying?"

Leia gave a sly, pointed look at the door. Then, she hopped to her feet and practically skipped to the huge metal door of their cell.

Luke watched her place a palm on the door.

"This door," Leia said, "is our way out. Why wait around for someone else to open it when we could do it ourselves?"

The bright dawn of realization fell upon Luke's face, sending him to his feet as well.

"You mean...we're gonna open the door with...the Force?"

"Yep. And we'd better get practicing."

 **~•~**

The twins spent the next two hours experimenting in their abilities, working on everything they knew how to do, as well as trying some more difficult endeavors.

Because it had been an accident the first time, Luke tried to _voluntarily_ lift Leia with the Force.

"Why can't _I_ be the one to lift _you_?" Leia complained, crossing her arms in protest.

"Because you're the lighter of the two of us."

"Wha- that doesn't make sense! It's the _Force_! Weight shouldn't have anything to do with it."

Nevertheless, the Princess settled herself into a comfortable sitting position on the floor, and Luke sat across from her.

His eyes slid shut, and Luke set his mouth into a thin line of concentration.

Nothing happened for a few minutes, and discouragement was about to set in.

Then, as Leia was impatiently resting her head in her hands, she felt the sensation of zero gravity. In no time, Leia was hovering at least a foot off the ground.

"Did it work yet?" Luke asked, his eyes still closed.

"Uh-huh," was Leia's unenthusiastic reply. "Can I try something now?"

"What did you wanna do?"

"I just-"

But because Luke's concentration was now focused elsewhere, Leia dropped back to the sleek floor with a yell.

Luke winced. "Sorry."

"I think we've practiced enough," Leia groaned, sitting up. "Time for Phase Two!"

Luke cast a skeptical look at the heavy door, observing how impossibly immobile it was. He really didn't see how it could be moved with the Force, but he was learning to expect the unexpected.

But still...

"I don't know, Leia," Luke said, scratching his head. "The door looks pretty... _solid._ "

Brushing some unruly curls out of her eyes, Leia gave the door a glance. However, her eyes held a glint of hope that Luke's didn't possess. He wondered what she had planned.

Leia stood and paced up the small incline until her face was merely an inch away from the door.

"I bet we can open it," she stated simply.

Luke's first instinct was to respond with a negative comment, given that he didn't quite understand how they could move the door at all. Yet, he kept quiet, if only to prevent his sister from losing any of her confidence. She was going to need it.

Leia had her eyes closed. Her hands were pressed up against the metal door, and her breaths were deep and came slowly.

A nearly suffocating silence clouded the room. Leia's focused expression developed a strained crease between her brows, but nothing happened. It was a few more silent minutes before Leia opened her eyes. She didn't look happy.

"There's _definitely_ someone outside the cell," she said angrily. "I should've known! Of _course_ he wouldn't leave the cell unguarded! How could I be so _stupid_?"

Luke had to see for himself. He came up next to Leia and put an ear to the door.

"I don't hear anything," he whispered.

Leia rolled her brown eyes. "Obviously. You can't _hear_ it - you have to _feel_."

Making sure to direct his sarcastic mocking in the opposite direction, the blonde boy turned back to the door and followed Leia's former example.

After a few seconds, Luke said, "Oh, you're right. Someone's out there. But who?"

"Probably a stormtrooper, or maybe a lieutenant or something. Does it matter?"

It didn't. Either way, the twins wouldn't get very far, if they even managed to open the door.

Although, before Luke's last shred of hope could completely evaporate, Leia was already at work.

"Excuse me!" Leia yelled through the door. "Hello?"

No response.

" _Hello?_ "

No response.

"I KNOW YOU'RE OUT THERE!" Leia screamed, startling Luke so bad that he stumbled back into the wall.

Leia's ourburst apparently had some effect on the guard, because he called, "What do you want?"

The Princess's smirk was especially smug as she replied, "Are you a stormtrooper or an officer?"

No response.

"Do _NOT_ make me ask you again!" Leia shouted, but her smile told Luke that she was actually quite pleased with herself.

There was a small pause, but the guard finally said, "What's it to you? I don't have to tell you anything."

Leia's smile widened as she replied, "Okay, well, thanks for all your help!"

Then, Leia skipped down to the far corner and beckoned Luke to follow. He was entirely confused as to why Leia was so cheerful.

When the twins were huddled together in the corner, Leia whispered, "He _totally_ gave himself away!"

Luke frowned. "Uh, how?"

"He spoke a long enough sentence for me to _really_ pay attention to his voice. It sounded echoey, which implies he's probably wearing a helmet. Lieutenants don't wear helmets, so it could only be a stormtrooper."

"Wow, okay, but how does that affect _us_?"

As if it was the most obvious thing in the whole galaxy, Leia sighed and replied, "A stormtrooper guard will make things easier. The helmet will give him a disadvantage because it's hard to see out of. The armor weighs him down, it'll be two against one, _and_ everyone knows troopers have lousy aim. It's _perfect_!"

Luke failed to pick up on Leia's enthusiasm, but the logic was hard to ignore. So, Luke pondered it for a minute longer before giving in.

"Okay, fine. But even considering all that, we're gonna need some strategy here."

"That's the genius part of it! There's _no strategy_."

Luke was too busy trying to comprehend the "no strategy" part to realize that Leia was wriggling out of her armor.

She tossed aside the clunky chest plate, revealing her black tank top underneath. Leia then kicked off her heavy boots and (with some struggling) took off the armored pants. She couldn't help frowning at her Tatooine potato-sack-pants that she was still wearing.

Eventually, Leia removed her satchel from the armor compartment and stuck the stormtrooper gloves inside the bag.

When Luke opened his mouth to question that last action, Leia said, "Just as a souvenir," with a smile.

Everything was ready. The only thing left to do was to actually _exit._

Luke hurried up to the door and dramatically threw his arm up towards it.

"Move, door!" Luke commanded.

Nothing.

"Open sesame!"

Still nothing.

"Rise! Lift! Permit exit!"

Leia watched with amusement, and she was fairly sure she heard the stormtrooper make an equally-amused noise.

The door stayed very much _shut._ Luke had lowered his arm and was now glaring daggers at the metal door, perhaps hoping it would simply explode into pieces.

Some random impulse had Leia clipping her holdout blaster back to her belt, even though she didn't think they'd need it. Better to be safe than sorry.

"Luke, you're doing it all wrong," Leia said, walking up to him.

A sudden burst of adrenaline stirred somewhere inside the Princess, but she chose to ignore it in order to remain focused.

"I don't think this is gonna work," Luke complained.

"Well, you can't just yell at the door and expect it to obey."

In the middle of that sentence, Leia had swung her arm in a pointed gesture toward the door. However, she had certainly not expected it to emit a low grumbling noise and slide open.

There was indeed a stormtrooper on the other side, and he was just as surprised as the twins. All three of them stood motionless for a long moment, until a hidden instinct took over in Leia's body.

In no more than three seconds, Leia grabbed her blaster, aimed, and shot the _stormtrooper's_ blaster dead-on. It exploded in a shower of sparks and smoke, creating a diversion big enough to suit Leia.

While the guard was still stumbling for balance and processing what just happened, Leia grabbed Luke by the hand, bolted out the door, and gave the trooper a hard shove.

He tripped and tumbled into the open cell, and Leia make quick time of closing that door again.

Luke stood a few feet away, struggling to catch up with the circumstances.

" _What_ did you just _do?!_ " he asked, clutching his head with both hands.

Leia let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding.

"I-I have _no_ idea. But...I think it worked."

"Is this what you meant by 'no strategy'?"

Leia's smile seemed unnaturally mischievous when she said, "Uh-huh."

"I don't like this idea at all."

"Well...that's unfortunate. And now, if you'll give me a minute, I think I can make this worse."

With that, Leia took off down the hallway, forcing Luke to follow. But not before the boy got a chance to mutter, "I have a _really_ bad feeling about this."

 **A/N: Who agrees with Luke? Who has Leia's apparently undying confidence? Lemme know XD**

 **This very well may be my longest chapter ever, but not for long. The final chapters will be a bit longer because I had to fit a lotta stuff into them. I hope that's okay - OH, and sorry for the extensive dialogue in this one...do you guys like the twins' chats, or not? (I mean, the chapters are already written, but I'm curious haha.)**

 **Well, the ol' updating schedule should go back to normal now. So there's that to look forward to!**

 **If you're feeling up to it, drop a review down there and tell me whatcha think ^_^ and have a lovely day/night! :)**

 **-Lia**


	48. Chapter 48: Everyone Has Secrets

**A/N: HAAAIIII! Nice of you to join me on this lovely day! No, but seriously, it's summer and I'm pretty stoked about it! Plus, it's the 48th chapter, which means we're ALMOST DONE! Whoo whooooo! *flies off stair railing***

 **If you've stuck around this long in the story, you da real MVP. Truly.**

 **REVIEWS!**

 **Nobodythestormcrow: Thanks for the review! YAY, glad you think they're cute! :) Yeah, that poor guard. He's not gonna get in trouble or anything, but it was probably a hassle to get outta that cell XD**

 **master-walker: Hi, and welcome! Thank you so much! I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying it enough to jump for joy ;) Haha, no, I totally understand. My first few chapters are NOT my best work whatsoever XD I even recently considered putting a little disclaimer in my summary like "BEWARE THE OPENING CHAPTERS" LOL XD Hope you decide to stick around! :)**

 **changingdestiny04: Hi! I always love reading your reviews XD Yep! Luke and Leia are equally strong in the Force, they just tend to use it at different times. They're kinda developing at different paces, so it makes it a little uneven, haha. Plus, they're both still working on controlling it, so sometimes things just happen that make them go "Wait, did I do that?".  
I know, right? That armor is useless. It's legit plastic. It's gotta be! XD  
Hmm, no promises about Padme stepping in, but hey, ya never know ;)  
She's got less undying confidence and more thrill-seeking blood, but yeah, basically the same XD Oh, don't worry, she's definitely gonna make things worse, heh.**

 **Alright, time for the chapter! Get ready, guys. You aren't ready for this one XD**

 **WHEEEEEE!**

 **|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|•|**

"Wait up!" Luke hollered down the hall. Leia was already far ahead of him, and she didn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon.

She did, however, turn back long enough to reply, " _Keep_ up!"

So, with an aggravated sigh, that's exactly what Luke did.

He also couldn't help noticing that Leia looked way too happy for the somewhat dire circumstances. For all they knew, Darth Vader could be on his way. Did he feel them leave the cell? Was he secretly tracking them somehow?

Additionally, it didn't help matters that Luke and Leia weren't wearing their armor anymore. If they got caught, there was no easy way out of it. Pretending to be soldiers wouldn't quite work in this case.

Luke also had to smile at Leia's appearance. With every day that passed, she looked less and less like a Princess. Leia's tank top, dusty pants and satchel hardly gave the impression of royalty.

She _did_ act like a Princess though - at least, to Luke's standards. Maybe _all_ her actions didn't completely portray an air of poise and grace. . .but she did carry dignity and compassion. Luke didn't know much about Princesses or their required traits, but he thought Leia seemed fit for the role.

Yet, as she jogged down the sleek hallway of Vader's _Star Destroyer_ , she seemed much more hardcore than any regular Princess. And Luke was okay with that.

The blonde boy was so engrossed in his speculations that he barely managed to stop in time. Leia had abruptly ceased her jog, and Luke almost crashed into her back.

The Princess was peering around a corner, eyes fixed on something down the hall.

"What is it?" Luke whispered, afraid to make too much noise.

"There are two troopers down there."

The twins had run down a main hallway that now split into three different corridors. One way continued on straight, and the other two went left and right. Leia was currently staring down the left hallway, and there were indeed two soldiers at the far end.

Luke took it upon himself to check the right hall, only to get yanked back by his sister.

"No!" she hissed. "They'll see you!"

He realized she was probably right. If the stormtroopers happened to glance down the hall, they would most likely spot Luke's blonde head poking out of the other hallway.

"They could turn around and see you, too!" Luke countered.

As true as that statement was, Leia was being quite careful in her spying. That, and the stormtroopers were not paying the hallway any attention whatsoever. They seemed entirely consumed in a conversation about a new type of blaster.

 _They really need to get their priorities straight._

Leia turned to her brother. "Does the hall keep going to our right, or is it a dead end?"

He risked the smallest peek down the right corridor.

"It keeps going, I think."

Leia seemed to consider that for a moment, then ducked back further into their hiding spot.

"If we go down the hallway," she started, "and it turns out to be a dead end. . .well, the 'dead end' is gonna be more literal than we would like."

Her dry attempt at humor gave Luke a squirmy, unsettled feeling.

The twins stood in mutual silence for a couple of minutes. Neither teen wanted to be the first to suggest that they storm the hallway.

But did they have a choice? At any given moment, reinforcements could arrive. Surely that cell guard had a way to communicate with his peers. Had he already called for backup? Were they on their way?

All good questions, but no time for answers.

 _We go on three_ , Leia said through the Force. Luke turned and gave her a startled look. He clearly wasn't expecting to _actually_ make a getaway.

 _One..._

Luke sucked in a breath.

 _Two..._

Leia grabbed Luke's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

 _Three!_

With Leia in the lead, the twins darted out of their hiding place and began sprinting down the black hallway.

Adrenaline coursed through Leia's veins, a feeling that she recognized all too well. Only this time, there was something darker mixed in with it.

 _Danger._

Immediately, a stormtrooper called, "Halt!" and fired a speedy, red bolt through the air.

Leia had just enough time to wonder if he had fired out of reflex or hatred. Then, the fiery bolt exploded on the wall in front of the twins.

The Princess leapt back with a yelp, but she certainly did not halt. As soon as she and Luke recovered from the general shock, panic set in and they _ran._

Turns out, the hallway wasn't a dead end. It turned left and continued straight, then split off into three more directions. The twins, hands still locked onto eachother, skidded through the corridors, occasionally banging against corners of walls.

They could hear hurried footsteps pursuing them. Someone was shouting, "Hey! Stop! Get back here!", but there were no more blaster bolts. Evidently, the soldiers had realized who the escapees were and weren't willing to risk harming them.

Panting for breath, Luke asked, "What now? What's the plan?"

Leia kept her eyes forward and replied, "There isn't one, remember? Spontaneity _is_ the plan!"

"So, technically, there's a plan?"

"We don't have time to discuss this in a committee!"

"I am _not_ a committee!"

And so it went. The exhausted twins were channeling all their available energy to their running (a trick they hadn't tested but decided to try now anyway). Two (or maybe more) stormtroopers were still hot on their tails.

"I have an idea!" Leia finally said, pulling Luke down another hallway.

"It's about time!" was Luke's response.

Several hallways and one doorway later, Luke and Leia stood looking at a metal door.

The sound of fast, angry footsteps had died away, so the twins had a small window of time to carry out Leia's idea.

The only problem was that Luke was not sure it was an idea at all.

" _What. . ._ is _that_?" Luke asked, observing the door with confusion.

Leia, who was still catching her breath, motioned to a few buttons on the wall. Luke eyed them.

After a few moments, he said, "Okay, so. . . ?"

"It's an _elevator_ , genius!" Leia said, as if that explained everything.

Again, Luke made a face that asked, "So what?"

Exasperated, Princess Leia rolled her eyes and slammed her first onto one of the buttons. The elevator door promptly slid open, revealing an empty black space.

Luke grabbed Leia's arm before she could step into the elevator.

"Uh, okay, but where does it go?" Luke questioned, clearly nervous.

"I don't know. I'm assuming it goes up and down, but I've never-"

"No, I mean where do you _plan_ to go?"

Leia shrugged, and Luke raised his eyes heavenward, despairingly.

Taking that gesture as one of acceptance, Leia pulled her brother into the elevator and closed the door.

"Up or down?" she asked, examining the unfamiliar array of buttons on the elevator wall.

"I don't know! This was _your_ idea, not mine."

"Down it is."

Down seemed like a slightly terrifying direction to be headed, especially considering the circumstances, but Leia had already pushed a button. With a groan of metal and a whirring sound, the elevator began its descent.

Leia suddenly took it upon herself to whip out her small blaster and shoot something in the top left corner of the elevator.

"Gosh, Leia!" Luke exclaimed, clutching his chest. "Gimme a warning next time!"

Leia simply tucked her blaster away and said, "Hidden camera. Had to make sure no one is watching us."

"If it was hidden, how did you know it was there?"

Leia tilted her head. "Um. . .instinct, I guess. I just. . .knew."

How did their lives get to the point where that answer wasn't confusing anymore?

A few more seconds of welcome silence passed by. The twins were still collecting themselves from their most recent brush with death. Those close encounters never did wear off easily,

Right when Leia was opening her mouth to ask, "Does this thing ever stop?", the elevator glided to a surprisingly smooth halt.

When the door slid open, Luke and Leia gingerly surveyed the new room.

It was dark, with no other visible entrances or exits. Wooden crates, cardboard boxes, barrels, and various additional storage items lined the walls and cluttered up the interior. Fortunately, there didn't seem to be any guards or personnel on this particular floor.

Score!

"Looks safe to me," Leia shrugged, hopping out of the elevator. Instinctively, Luke reached out to stop her, but then retracted his arm.

He stayed in the elevator-quietly observing the dark surroundings-until the door started automatically closing. That gave Luke the motivation he needed to join his sister.

He found Leia calmly strolling through the maze of boxes, occasionally running her hand along the wall.

"What're you doing?" Luke asked.

"Checking for a light."

"Oh. There's one right by the door."

Leia gave her brother a ferocious look and stomped to the door to punch the light switch.

When a dim light bathed the room, dozens more boxes were revealed. A particularly dark corner had a crate that caught Leia's eye.

The crate, unlike all the others, was black. It bore the Imperial insignia, as well as red letters on each side, saying, "RESTRICTED" and "CLASSIFIED".

Leia's body was already consciously moving towards the crate. Luke had to step in front of her.

"Uh, _what_ do you think we're doing?"

"Oh, right. How silly of me!" Leia hurriedly whipped out her blaster and pivoted in a circle, shooting at the room's top corners. The action nearly gave Luke another heart attack.

"SHEESH, Leia!" he yelled. "Give a guy a _heads up_!"

Leia offered a rather unapologetic smile. "Sorry."

As sparks rained down from the ceiling, a solemn thought appeared in Leia's head.

They couldn't stay here forever. This was obviously some kind of storage room, and an elevator had direct access to it.

Was it important? Clearly. A very top-secret-looking box was sitting in the corner. Boxes like that couldn't be hidden _any_ where.

How long did they have until someone came down? A day? An hour? Five minutes? She wasn't sure, but she had an unnaturally paranoid tingle in the back of her mind. Was that bad?

 _Get a grip. It's fine. Luke and I can use the Force, and we've trained on our own for a while. The Imperials don't stand a chance._

But that crate was pretty tempting.

Leia's eyes sweeped the room, finally landing on Luke, who was arranging stacks of boxes to make a hiding spot.

Because her brother was otherwise occupied (and would therefore not notice her), Leia slyly began stalking over to the far right corner. The black Imperial crate sat ominously on the floor, casting a rectangular shadow.

Leia crept closer, keeping one eye on her twin. He was now unsuccessfully trying to pry the wooden lid off a crate marked "RATIONS".

Finally deciding that this was her last chance, Leia dove behind some barrels and crawled the rest of the distance to the strange crate.

She had to shove away some heavy metal boxes, but the end result was worth it. Up close, the black crate was much bigger. It reached Leia's stomach in height, and as for depth, it seemed pretty hefty.

Leia placed her hands on the lid and yanked.

Nothing happened. She tugged again, harder this time.

Still nothing.

The lid didn't look like it planned on moving.

Briefly, Leia toyed with the idea of using the Force to rip the lid off. . .but she didn't know how to do that. So, she gratefully pulled off her satchel and dug through it.

From the other side of the room, Luke made a confused noise, which was Leia's cue to hurry up. She rifled madly through her bag, eventually pulling out Han's small fusioncutter.

Seconds later, the lid was off.

Leia hesitated, then. What if there was something _freaky_ in there? What if someone found out she had seen it, and she got in serious trouble? What if-

"Leia!" was Luke's indignant call. He pushed his way through the mess and ended up standing next to Leia's crouched form.

He gestured to the crate, appalled. "What were you _thinking_?!"

Leia looked at the floor and shrugged.

Luke continued, "If Vader finds out that you broke open his secret stuff, he'll be furious! Those things look important! They're-they're, uh. . .what exactly _are_ they?"

Leia peeked over the edge and frowned.

"What in the _worlds_ is all _that_?" Leia mumbled. She rose to her full height in order to see everything the crate held.

It was a mishmash of several seemingly random items, some of which had been stamped with a word. Datapads, blueprints, comlinks, schematics, unidentifiable circular objects, pieces of scrap metal, you name it. It was all in the crate, amongst hoards of other things.

Luke reached in and slowly picked up a datapad. The device looked relatively undamaged, except for general wear. Scattered around inside the crate, there were no less than seven more just like it.

Since Luke had apparently adopted privacy violation, Leia shrugged and pawed through the contents as well. She came up with the strange sphere. It was heavy, probably fashioned of some type of metal. There weren't any visible buttons or things of the like, so it couldn't be a thermal detonator. What was it?

Luke voiced the question, but Leia didn't have an answer. Thoughtfully, she turned it around in her palm.

The sphere had merely one feature of interest. Near the top, there was a circular depression in the otherwise smooth metal. Almost like a moon crater.

"Huh," said Leia, tossing it to Luke. "I don't know what to make of it. Do you think it does something?"

The blonde farm boy caught the metal ball and gave it a quizzical look. He flipped it upside down and peered at something on the bottom.

"It says 'approved' down here," Luke declared.

"What? Lemme see."

After several seconds of studious silence, Leia happened to glance down at the datapad Luke had found. She leaned over to grab it and flicked it on.

The digital screen lit up, with a few options being offered.

 **1\. VIEW PROTOTYPE IMAGE**

 **2\. DISPLAY 3D MODEL**

 **3\. CONFIRM DESIGN**

The twins gave each other a look, equally confused on both ends. The three options seemed to all be connected to the same thing, but what _was_ it? What "design"? What "prototype"?

Finally, Leia prompted, "We should select one."

Luke was pessimistic. He began rattling off a list of how many bad things could possibly come out of this (including "being double-arrested" for viewing private information"). His sister wasn't phased, though, and selected " **VIEW PROTOTYPE IMAGE** ".

Promptly, the datapad displayed a pixelated image. It was of a round object with a circular depression on. . .wait a second!

Leia held up the metal sphere to compare. The digital image and the metal ball looked identical!

Across the screen's display, green letters flashed " **APPROVED** ". Leia gulped. Something about this didn't feel right at all.

 **DISPLAY 3D MODEL?** beeped the datapad. Leia selected "yes" and the screen blinked to a 3D, high resolution, interactive version of the image they had just been shown.

Leia touched the screen, which abruptly zoomed in on the sphere. When she dragged her finger along the image, the digital orb rotated.

"Whoa," the twins breathed.

Again, large flashing letters screamed " **APPROVED** ". Leia wasn't sure _what_ was being approved, but it didn't look good.

With a few more swipes of her finger, Leia managed to open a large sidebar on the side of the screen. It displayed countless strings of numbers and tiny symbols.

Everything looked so complex that Leia almost didn't realize it was showing them the schematics.

When Luke saw the number for the life size measurement, he let out a low whistle.

"That's _huge._ Wow. I've never seen. . .just. . .wow."

Leia felt the same way.

Further details led the twins to believe that they were really viewing a top secret Imperial project: a space station.

"What else is in there?" Leia wondered aloud.

The two siblings eventually came to the conclusion of tipping the crate over and spilling its contents all over the floor. Datapads skittered in every direction, another metal ball rolled into Luke's foot, and a variety of other objects clattered to the ground.

Luke lifted the second metal sphere and checked the bottom. He raised an eyebrow.

"This one says 'denied' on the bottom."

Leia frowned and took the object. Sure enough, there were tiny red letters spelling " **DENIED** " on the underside of the ball.

She wondered if this one was different from the first. The material felt the same, they both had that round indent. . .except, the "approved" sphere's crater was located at the top. On the "denied" orb, the crater was placed directly in the middle.

"Weird," Leia concluded, holding up both items to compare. "I don't like this at all."

"If you don't like _that_ , you probably don't wanna know what I found," said Luke, guiltily.

The Princess whirled around anyway to see her brother surrounded by pieces of paper. She scooted closer.

Each page had a different picture on it, but they all clearly belonged to the same major construction. One showed the schematics for a control room, another for a cargo hold, another for a hallway.

"This thing they're planning is insane!" Leia said, anxiously running a hand through her hair.

"Yeah, no kidding. D'you think they'll actually go through with it? It could just be an idea, right?"

"I have no idea. From the looks of all this planning, I think it's a done deal."

The twins sat in solemn silence for a while after that. Neither one knew what to think, at this point.

Leia knew they had stumbled upon something crucial, though. Imperials were planning to build a massive space station. . .information of that magnitude shouldn't stay secret.

"Uh, Leia?" Luke suddenly asked.

"What?"

Luke was grimly skimming some more blueprints. This one looked like it was describing the purpose of that weird crater.

"This thing isn't just a space station. It's a _weapon_."

". . . _What_?"

Leia leaned closer to bend over the paper with Luke. Their heads bumping lightly, Luke kept explaining.

"See that? It goes in farther than it looks. And see this part? It's some kind of _laser_ or something."

A tight knot established itself in the bottom of Leia's stomach.

"If that's really meant to be weapon," she whispered, "the galaxy doesn't stand a chance."

 **~•~**

Vader's presence was _not_ a safe place to be, currently.

The Dark Lord was standing at the viewport of his private quarters, hands folded behind his back. He was watching the stars outside, his mind lost in a maze of complexity.

To put things as simply as possible, Vader didn't know _how to feel._ On one hand, he had _children_ now! As in, plural! Twins! And he knew he should be happy about it, which, in a way, he was.

On the _other_ hand, where did he go from here? Those kids had no _idea._ He couldn't tell them he was their biological father, could he? They would inevitably be crushed. Frightened. Angry, even. Luke and Leia _already_ hated him, because he was the _Dark Lord of the Sith/Second-in-command to the Emperor_!

But if Vader didn't tell them, they'd most likely _never_ find out. He doubted the Organas would ever tell their daughter something like that. Luke's guardians (though Vader didn't know them personally) had an even slimmer chance of revealing the information.

Vader couldn't keep the twins on his _Star Destroyer_ forever. That would be almost cruel. But he also was feeling something else towards those children. Something that came from a deep place inside his chest. Was it pity? Kind of, but stronger.

Was it. . . _sympathy_? Now _there_ was something new. Vader didn't remember feeling that emotion in an unusually long stretch of time. Of course, being Darth Vader didn't allow a lot of room to feel sympathy towards the Empire's victims or slaves, but still.

Yes. It was true. Darth Vader felt _sympathy_ towards the twins. Surprisingly, he sort of didn't mind. They were his own offspring, after all.

Those children had been through everything. Separated at birth to two completely different planets; one raised as a Princess, and the other raised as a moisture farmer; each led to believe their real parents were both dead; neither knowing that the other existed, until they met. . .

How did they manage to meet? Why was Leia on Tatooine in the _first_ place?

A new spiral of questions threatened to suck Vader in too deep, so he shook them away for now. The point was, could he possibly _willingly_ separate the twins _again_? It was his fault they were ever split up - he couldn't divide his children again. It would scatter all three of the Skywalkers to different corners of the galaxy!

But. . .if Vader waited much longer, the Emperor would catch on. He was already getting more suspicious than need be. Once the Emperor was aware of the twins' capabilities, they were as good as gone

Darth Vader had to find a solution before it was too late.

It was going to be a long night.

 **A/N: Yeah, that's right, it's night in the story right about now. The twins have their schedules all messed up now :p**

 **So, Vader. The poor guy's got a lot on his traumatized mind, huh? I wonder what he's gonna do.**

 **But more importantly...WHAT DID LUKE AND LEIA JUST DISCOVER? XD Haha, I'm sure you know. But hey, if you have any opinions about this sudden plot twist, feel free to leave them down below! :)**

 **Okay, I'm gonna get going. Oh, and happy Father's Day... :3**  
 **I dunno if any fathers read this story, haha. If not, go give your dad a hug for me XD**

 **Byeeee! :)**

 **-Lia**


	49. Chapter 49: Chaos Control (Or Not)

**A/N: HELLO everyone! (Let's just ignore the fact that I accidentally skipped a week again...heh *nervous chuckle*.) I hope you had a great Independence Day/Canada Day/day in general, depending on where you live! XD**

 **So, we've hit Chapter 49. That's a lotta chapters, guys! Next chapter is Chapter 50! But let's not get ahead of ourselves XD Before we start, review responses!**

 **355: Hi there! Yep, Luke and Leia have discovered a rather crucial bit of info. They won't be doing much with the Death Star information anytime soon, but it'll come back later in the story hehe. In regards to the "1/2 Chapter redemption" (I think I know what that is...?), I don't think I'll be pulling the story in that particular direction. Were you talking about Vader suddenly coming fully back to the Light after finding his children? He definitely is feeling a little different, but his redemption won't be that simple, I'm afraid :p And don't worry - I won't be killing any characters (any MAIN characters, anyway) in this story. Does that answer your question? :) Thanks for the jar of creativity! XD**

 **thechosenbibliophile: Spiraling out of control indeed ;) It can only get worse from here, haha. Thanks for the review! Glad you liked the chapter!**

 **Nobodythestormcrow: Well, the twins don't know what they've discovered just yet. I mean, they know it's important...they just don't realize how HUGE of a discovery it actually is. Oh yeah, Leia is basically Padme, but shorter XD they share a lot of characteristics, for sure! It's one reason Vader figured out she was his daughter so quickly :p Thanks for the review!**

 **imnotraven16: Thank you! Glad you're enjoying it! :)**

 **master-walker: Oh, yeah, I get it. No hard feelings! I definitely understand where you're coming from. Back then, I was really new to writing fanfic, and I also didn't have a lot of experience writing Bail (or male characters in general...). I hope he was better written in the more recent chapter when he popped up again :p Thanks for the review!**

 **ShaniShinx: Thank you! Yay, I'm glad you like it! Yeah, this Leia girl is full of spunk...and sass too. So much sass *wades through sass*. Well, the story is technically Leia-centric, but I get what you're saying XD if it helps, this chapter does have a little more Luke-spotlight, haha! Just you wait...the little guy is hilarious when I want him to be XD Thank you for the kind words! Ah, yes, Vader feels. He's got a lot of them. But believe it or not, he's capable of major sass too...just like Leia. This chapter doesn't have too many Vader feels, but the next one does :P Hope you enjoy! :)**

 **Okay! That all being said, I won't delay you any longer. If you have trouble remembering where we are in the story (cuz I'm lame and forgot to upload last weeeeekkkk), maybe go back and reread Chapter 48. If you think you'll be fine, go right on ahead and jump in. Say it with me now...**

 **WHHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!**

"I think we should go," Leia suddenly declared.

She and her brother had been spending the last hour sorting through their new discovery. The other six datapads contained similar information to the first one, though some of them held details concerning recruiting, supply runs, and technical management.

Luke looked up from absentmindedly rolling one of the metal spheres across the floor. "What? Why?"

The Princess cast the elevator a nervous glance.

"You don't feel that?" she asked, biting her lower lip.

Luke allowed himself a moment to absorb Leia's words. He tilted his head and did his best to open his mind to the Force - or whatever it was that Leia was sensing.

Opening your mind to the Force felt a bit like being in a warm room and opening a door to let in a cool breeze. All the emotions of everyone nearby would be pulled toward your mind, filling your head with people's thoughts.

To the twins, the Force was still a slightly foreign concept, and they had trouble understanding exactly _how_ it felt to use it. Living creatures (anything from people to plants) appeared in their subconscious as specks of light. Emotions couldn't really be _seen_ radiating off of things, but the twins _felt_ the waves tickle their minds.

Sometimes, certain presences had a particular feeling attached to them. Vader, for instance, always carried an aura of something the twins could never place. It was darkness - of that they were sure. But such a cold, lifeless, empty darkness! The feeling surrounded Vader in a permanent bubble. A darkness so black that it made shadows seem like blinding light.

Every time Luke or Leia sensed something, it was usually one twin or the other. But with Vader, they _both_ immediately shuddered with fear. They _both_ could feel that darkness, which made it two times as intense.

And they had yet to figure out what caused it.

Now, as Luke listened for what Leia was feeling, he felt a lifeform getting steadily closer. A tiny pinpoint of light, coming nearer. . .nearer. . .

"Hide!" came Leia's panicked voice. It snapped Luke out of his daze, and she pulled him behind his homemade hiding place.

"What? What is it?!" Luke said, as loud as he dared (which wasn't very loud).

Leia busied herself with checking her satchel's inventory. "A lieutenant. He's coming down on the elevator."

The young Princess, by this point, had quite a bit of experience with escaping. She was already formulating a plan. A rather reckless one, but a plan just the same.

As if on cue, the twins heard the elevator door open with a _hissss._ Almost immediately, footsteps thumped in a hurried path towards the opened crate in the corner.

Leia heard the lieutenant mutter something irreverent under his breath. Anxiously, he began placing the discovered items back in their rightful place.

When Leia opened her mouth to whisper, she quickly clamped it shut again. Instead, she used a more _discreet_ method of communication.

 _Luke. Luke? Helloooo?_

The boy sharply looked up.

 _Leia. . . ? What now?_

 _Don't worry - I have a plan. All we need to do is -_

 _No, no, and no. We're not going crazy and blowing our cover. Why don't we just stay here and wait this guy out?_

 _Because he'll see us! It won't be long before he realizes someone has to be down here! Common sense! Sheesh._

 _Either way, I'm not risking anything._

 _Fine,_ ** _be_** _that way. But I'm getting out of here, with or without you. If you wanna sit here forever until Vader finds you, be my guest._

Luke didn't think his sister was being serious. . .until she started crawling directly towards the lieutenant.

 _Wait, hang on! I'll come with!_ Luke quickly amended. He also pretended to not see Leia's triumphant grin.

With some careful footwork and a light touch, the twins managed to get uncomfortably close to the officer. Oblivious to the galaxy, the Imperial worker was engrossed in picking through the crate's contents.

 _We need to get past him, so we can get in the elevator,_ Leia said.

 _Oh, sure, yeah, no problem. Let's just silently sneak past the man standing RIGHT IN FRONT OF-_

 _Shh! You're thinking too loud!_

Leia crouched behind a wooden barrel, dug through her bag, and pulled out an odd, green-colored rock.

Luke gave her a quizzical look, so Leia sent him, _I don't actually know what it is. I found it on Han's ship before we left it._

After mumbling a quick, "I hope this isn't important or anything," Leia wound back her arm and threw the rock to the opposite end of the room.

It clattered into the wall and made a shockingly loud, echoing noise. The lieutenant jumped, startled. But then, playing right into Leia's plan, the man slowly stood and made his way to the source of the sound.

The twins held their breath as he stalked past their hiding place, but he passed without suspicion. The unsuspecting lieutenant crept through the maze of storage, finally pausing to inspect the area where the stone made noise.

 _Now's our chance!_ Leia sent. _Follow my lead - and hurry!_

The look of silent terror on Luke's face was mildly unnerving, but Leia sprang up from her crouched position anyway.

When she knew the lieutenant was completely facing in the opposite direction, the Princess leapt nimbly over an overturned box and made a mad dash for the elevator.

Unfortunately, she had overlooked a very necessary detail. The elevator door was _closed_ , and the twins really didn't have the available time to push the button and wait.

Nevertheless, Leia kept running towards the solid door, sending a mental plea to the galaxy for this to work.

By this time, a very startled lieutenant had already turned around. He faltered for a moment, then stumbled into a run.

"Hey! You two! Stop!" he called uselessly. The twins were already feet away from the elevator door, which was _still_ closed.

Closer. . .

 _Closer. . ._

Leia nearly skidded to a panicked halt, putting her arms up in front of her. But she heard Luke's _"No, keep going. Trust me."_ His words almost didn't make it into Leia's mind, mostly because her brain was occupied with screaming, "Open it open it open it!"

At this point, Leia wasn't clear on whether she should continue running. What exactly was her brother planning to do? It's not like he could-

Just as the Princess was prepared for impact, the elevator door slid open, allowing two very surprised siblings to slide inside.

The shock dissolved into panic.

"Close it close it close it close it!" Leia urged frantically, repeatedly pounding an "up" button.

"I'm trying!" said Luke. He was directing all his concentration to the door, willing it to close.

The lieutenant swerved towards the door. Leia had just enough time to catch the glint of anger and disbelief in the Imperial's eyes before the heavy metal blocked their access to one another.

Even when the door was completely sealed, the twins heard a ruthless pounding on the metal. Undoubtedly the lieutenant.

Soon enough, the elevator lurched into a smooth ascent.

Leia leaned breathlessly against the wall behind her, sharing a relieved half-smile with her twin.

The relief didn't last long, though. Eventually, Luke asked the inevitable question.

"Um. . .what now?"

Leia gave him an irritated look. "We find Vader."

"How?"

Princess Leia took on a sly, thoughtful expression - the kind of look that usually meant she was about to suggest something risky. Luke braced himself.

"Welllllll," Leia started, "if we can't find Vader. . .we'll have to make _Vader_ find _us_."

 **~•~**

He couldn't believe it. He _really_ couldn't believe it.

Scratch that - he _did_ believe it. And, he supposed, he should have expected this outcome from the beginning.

Darth Vader was standing in front of an open cell door, staring blankly into a room where the twins _used_ to be.

Only _minutes_ ago had he come to set things straight. And what had he found? An incompetent stormtrooper, calling for backup. In a cell from which _Vader's children_ had managed to escape.

And yet, through all Vader's frustration, he felt something else. He'd never admit it out loud (especially not in front of the Emperor), but Darth Vader was maybe kinda sorta slightly _proud._

The situation actually made a degree of sense. The twins could use the Force, after all. Their escape was probably fairly easy.

Just one problem. _Where_ were the twins, and exactly how close to the Emperor's detection were they?

Luke and Leia must still be on the ship. How long could they evade the security? Had they already been found?

These questions, and many more, twisted Vader's stomach into a very unpleasant knot.

Then his ears tuned in to a low conversation being held by the stormtrooper and someone on his communicator.

"He has? Where?" the soldier was saying. A pause. "Oh. That may be a. . .problem."

Another pause, in which the trooper angled his head toward Vader the slightest bit.

"Why me?" The soldier sighed. "Fine. Yes. Alright, well, tell him to send a few squadrons to monitor the hallways. They're just kids. Can't be that hard to track 'em down."

He ended the conversation and stepped closer to Vader (if not a little hesitantly).

"Lord Vader, I've been informed that Lieutenant Jors has located the prisoners. He says they-"

"Where are they?" Vader cut in, eager to get to the point.

"H-he says he found them in the lower level cargo hold. A-and they. . .he says they've discovered our. . .project."

Darth Vader's heart performed an impressive leaping arabesque, followed by a rather painful tumble downstairs.

"Pardon?" Vader choked out.

"The Emperor's project, Sir. The one he calls the _Death Star_."

Vader didn't know what to do with this information. The _Death Star_ was not even his project. Emperor Palpatine had ordered the construction of the devastating weapon to flaunt the Empire's power. Who knows what the Emperor was actually planning to _do_ with it. He had mentioned "showing the galaxy what they were truly up against," but Vader suspected ulterior motives.

But super-weapon-related suspicions aside, this was an unacceptable situation. The twins absolutely could _not_ present the _Death Star_ information to anyone else. If that sort of thing got out, the entire galaxy would spiral into more chaos than Vader's life thus far. Which was saying a lot.

"And where are the children now?" the Dark Lord asked, shaking his head clear.

"We. . .we don't know, my lord. Jors is gathering backup as we speak, and I've ordered two squadrons to guard the halls."

"I see."

There was, of course, a much _simpler_ way to pinpointing the twins' location. But that required a connection through the Force that Vader couldn't find the courage to tie.

He still had a major issue settling with his _children_ being here. _Two kids._ HIS. That idea _alone_ was enough to send Vader's emotions off a cliff. Begrudgingly, he was already beginning to detect unwanted emotions like _love_. . .and _fatherly pride. . ._ and other particularly happy feelings.

Feelings and Vader didn't mix well at all. Especially when he gained enough sense to realize that he actually _didn't_ mind feeling happy. That was a whole separate realm of Things Too Confusing to Deal With.

"Uh. . .Lord Vader?" the stormtrooper hesitantly inquired.

His hollow voice snapped Darth Vader back into cruel reality.

"I want those children brought to me immediately - _unharmed_."

"Of course, Sir." The trooper turned on his heel and hurried down the hallway.

When the hallway was empty, Vader lingered in the cell doorway a moment before stepping inside. It was empty, except for the metal bench and a pile of stormtrooper armor.

Darth Vader bent down and lifted one of the helmets. He had to admit, those twins sure knew how to get what they wanted. The thought that two kids crossed the galaxy to find him was hard to process.

Yet, for a reason Vader wasn't about to _begin_ to comprehend, he wasn't entirely upset.

And for the first time in too many years, the tiniest smile crept over his masked face.

 **~•~**

The twins had reached another split hallway. One corridor continued straight, and the other went left, leading down a hall that looked like it hadn't been used a while.

"Which one?" Luke asked.

Leia glanced back and forth at the two hallways. She urged her tense shoulders to relax - maybe she could ask for the Force for guidance. That was a thing that Jedi did. . .right?

Finally, the Princess pointed to the dustier hallway. "Left."

She started off down the dim corridor, hearing Luke's reluctant sigh before he followed after her.

This hall was indeed dusty, and not nearly as bright as the other paths. In fact, the light just seemed to be getting dimmer and dimmer as they walked. The floor wasn't as sleek, either; it felt rough and worn under Leia's feet. She was finally starting to appreciate the scratchy socks she was wearing, courtesy of Luke's aunt and uncle.

Abruptly, Leia stopped. This time, Luke had enough time to halt as well, instead of crashing into his sister.

"What?" Luke whispered, suddenly afraid to make much noise.

Leia answered in a surprisingly casual tone. "Huh. Looks like there's a door here."

"What kind of door?"

"I don't know. It might lead to another cargo hold, I guess."

While Leia began searching for a way to open the door, Luke examined the wall. He gasped.

"Hey! There's letters on the wall."

Leia edged closer to see. There were faint markings on the dark wall, but the lighting didn't permit a clear view. The Princess pulled the glowrod from her bag. It wasn't very bright anymore, but it shone enough light on the wall to reveal faded gold letters that spelled **Officers' Quarters**.

Leia raised an eyebrow. "So, it's like a bedroom?"

"Yeah. For the lieutenants and other crew members and stuff."

"From the looks of this hallway, I don't think any officers have used this room in a while. Look at the floor - it's disgusting."

A layer of dust covered the rough metal, as well as the controls for the doors. When Luke tried to blow the dust off so they could open the door, the disturbed particles erupted around them in a flurry.

Leia grimaced and stepped back, waving away clouds of dust. "Nice."

They did, however, manage to open the door, which led into a room even darker than the hallway.

"Should we go in?" Luke wondered aloud.

"We could. . .but shouldn't one of us stay out here to keep watch?"

"Oh, sure. I'll wait in the dark, creepy hallway alone, and you can go into the dark, creepy room alone. It's foolproof."

"Okay, fine, come with! But if Imperials sneak up on us because you weren't watching, I'll laugh."

The twins stuck their heads through the dark doorway. Nothing in the room beyond seemed particularly threatening, but you could never be too sure.

Leia eventually shrugged and slipped into the vacant space. She spun around, glancing at the dark shapes looming in every corner.

"Is there a light in here?" Leia voiced. Luke jumped at the sudden noise, but he only rolled his eyes at himself and turned to find a light.

In the meantime, Leia, on her exploration of the quarters, stumbled and tripped over something painfully solid.

"Owww," she groaned, picking herself up off the floor. A simple open, wooden crate was sticking out from under a bunk-bed-cot. Leia glared at it. How dare the crate trip her.

Then she noticed something inside it. Propped against the inside of the box, a leather-bound notebook was collecting dust. With a quick glance in Luke's direction, Leia grabbed the book. She flipped through the lined pages, but the notebook was blank.

 _Perfect._

An idea formed in her head, but it would have to wait. For now, she just smiled and slid the new book into her satchel.

The room flooded with light. "Found it!" came Luke's triumphant voice. Leia shoved the crate completely under the bunk bed and joined her brother by the wall.

Once the twins were both contentedly leaning against the cold, metal wall, Luke caught a glimpse of Leia's "thinking face".

"So. . .how are we gonna get Vader to 'find us'?" he asked, not really expecting a definite answer. To his surprise, Leia had one.

"Oh, don't worry about that. I ha-"

" _Please_ don't say you have a plan. They never work."

"This one will. Spontaneous chaos _always_ works."

Luke refrained from asking how much experience she would've had to know it would work. He assumed Leia's family probably dealt with plenty of "spontaneous chaos".

"The first part requires an obstacle, some stormtroopers, a diversion, aaaaand. . .a lot of noise."

Almost hesitantly, Luke asked, "What about the second part?"

"There isn't one. I guess it's just one step." Leia laughed, but her brother was still running the first step through his mind.

Finally, he ventured, "Uh, can I maybe just supervise? I'd rather not participate."

"Oh, you're participating. I need you to do the 'obstacle' part."

". . .What kind of obstacle?"

Leia thought for a moment. The materials available in the room weren't much to work with. Was there any wood lying around?

Excitedly, Leia remembered the crate she'd pushed under the bed. She left a puzzled Luke by the wall and sped back to the bunk-bed-cot.

Right where she had left it, the crate sat on the rough, dusty floor. Leia dragged it forward and lifted it up into her arms.

By this time, Luke had caught up with his sister, and he stared curiously at the wooden box.

Sensing Luke's confusion, Leia said, "You'll use _this_ " - Leia held the box out for Luke to see - "to create an obstacle of my choice."

"And while I'm making this 'obstacle', what are you gonna be doing?"

"I'll be attracting stormtroopers and leading them here."

Leia's tone was far too casual for the weight of that sentence. It took Luke a few seconds to realize she wasn't kidding.

"Wait, you're serious?!"

"Of course I'm serious! Just trust me."

"So, this time, you wanna go down the dark hallway alone, and leave me in the dark room alone?"

"It's not dark anymore. You'll be fine."

Luke threw his hands in the air, unable to argue any further. He was gonna argue his way into a hole if he kept going. So, the blond boy snatched the (shockingly heavy) wooden crate and stomped over to a corner.

"Alright, how do I make this into an obstacle?"

"Um. . ." Leia mentally ran through her idea, and finally tossed her tiny blaster to Luke. "Just. . .start a small fire."

" _WHAT_?!"

"Just do it. And if I need I need you, I'll give you a signal."

"What signal?"

"I'll imitate the scream of a terrified little girl. Have fun!"

"Leia-!"

But Leia was already gone, off somewhere in the web of identical hallways. Luke turned his eyes to the gun in his hand. What was he supposed to do with this? If he blasted the crate, wouldn't it splinter into a hundred pieces?

Then again, the blaster was abnormally small. Maybe it would start a fire. . . ? But where was a safe place to shoot the crate?

Luke decided to stay right where he was. The crate sat snugly in the corner. Therefore, sending a silent plea of success to the universe, Luke stepped back ten paces, aimed, and fired.

The blazing red blaster bolt hit its target, shattering the wooden box - yet, a small pile of the wood was indeed now on fire.

For one, happy, relieved moment, Luke celebrated his victory.

Then he spotted a major problem.

A suspicious wisp of smoke was floating off of something _behind_ the charred wood. However, the _wall_ was the only thing behind it. Was the wall. . .on fire?

Upon further inspection, Luke discovered that the bolt had gone a bit further than the crate. There was now a conspicuous, smoking, jagged hole in the wall. Fortunately, it was close to the floor. Maybe no one would notice.

That hope didn't last long, either.

The sound of trickling liquid filled Luke's ears.

 _Did I hit a pipe? Oh, gosh, I hit a pipe._

Next, a sickeningly familiar scent burned Luke's nose. A scent he recognized all too well.

Coolant.

 _Oh no. Not good not good not good not good!_

Luke's body didn't catch up to his mind in time. The coolant was already leaking out onto the floor.

The young boy leapt forward, desperately trying to move the burning pile of wood away from the leak.

Too late.

The once small, fist-sized flame erupted into a smoldering inferno, forcing Luke to step back.

 _Uh-oh._

 ** _~•~_**

Leia, on the other hand, wasn't experiencing (or even aware of) Luke's predicament. In fact, her mind was completely occupied with attempting to memorize all the turns she'd made. The hallways were like a maze, splitting into separate halls every few minutes. And they all looked alike - no decorations, pictures, signs, or marks of any kind. It was a wonder that the crew ever got anywhere.

Finding a stormtrooper was turning out to be more difficult than Leia had planned. Hadn't several of them been chasing the twins earlier? Where were they now, when she actually needed them?

A few hallway-intersections later, a flash of white drew the Princess's attention to her left. She quickly darted after it, ignoring the warnings she received from her conscience.

The stormtrooper came fully into view, and Leia planted both feet firmly on the ground. This was the tricky part: getting his attention, and getting _away._

"Hey, Bucket-Head!" Leia shouted.

Her outburst must have startled him, because the armored soldier jumped a decent amount of inches. He whipped around, blaster aimed. Leia waited just long enough for the trooper to recognize her, then spun the other way and bolted around the corner.

"Princess Organa!" yelled the stormtrooper. Into his communicator, he said, "I've found her, I repeat, I've found the Princess. She's headed down Corridor Twelve."

Leia figured she didn't have much time before Imperial backup arrived. So, she gathered all her available energy and used it to fuel her wild sprint.

 _Luke!_ she thought, directing it to her brother. _I hope the room's ready, 'cause we're about to have company!_

She didn't get a reply, which was unsettling, but there wasn't time to dwell on that. The hallways were already blurring together. Which way was left, again? Where had she turned at this junction? Wait, where was she going?

Leia cleared the cloudy questions away and hoped the Force could take over from here. Her increased speed was making things fuzzy, and at this point, she wasn't sure she was even on the floor anymore. For all the girl knew, she could be on the ceiling.

Fast footsteps pounded steadily behind her as the stormtrooper continued updating his squadron. She had to be getting close to the bunk room, right?

Leia was about to make a left turn when a pulling sensation directed her the other way. Cringing, Leia hoped it was the correct hall.

It was, because moments later, the Princess came skidding uncontrollably into the officers' quarters, nearly plowing over Luke.

"Leia!" Luke yelled, rushing towards her. It was then that Leia realized there was a massive fire raging against the far wall - and for some reason, it was spreading.

"What did you _do_?!" screamed Leia. "I said to start a _small_ fire! This is _not small!_ "

Luke had to strain his ears to hear her over the crackling flames.

"I know," he explained, "but the blaster blew a _hole_ in the wall, and then coolant started leaking, and it just spread to the fire -"

Three armed stormtroopers clambered into the room, but when they caught sight of the fire, they seemed confused.

The twins grabbed the window of opportunity and dove behind the cover of two heavy boxes.

Apparently not willing to turn around just yet, the soldiers looked at each other before stepping into the smoke-filled room.

 _Now what?_ Luke asked, turning to his sister.

 _Get ready to move when I say so, okay?_

 _Wait, what? Why? What's going on?_

 _Just wait for the signal._

 ** _What_** _signal?!_

 _I'll tell you when to move! Ready?_

 _No._

 _One. . .two. . .JUMP!_

Promptly, the lights went out, cloaking the room in darkness. The only light was from the fire.

Shouts of surprise came from the troopers, and even Luke made a noise resembling a gasp. But he jumped to follow Leia anyway, willing himself not to trip or crash into anything.

From the glow of the fire, Luke could see Leia's figure in a crouched position, right behind one of the soldiers. She was holding what appeared to be. . .a broken chair leg.

As the now thoroughly confused stormtroopers talked anxiously through their communicators, Leia swung the chair leg and hit one of the soldiers in the arm.

"Hey!" he cried. "Show yourself!"

 _We don't have much time before their eyes adjust to the dark. I need you to keep turning the lights on and off, okay?_ Leia said, crawling farther away from the fire.

 _How do I do that?_

 _Same way I did. Use the Force, Luke, duh._

 _Ohhhh._

After he caught on, the lights flickered on again - but only for a few seconds. It gave Leia the seconds she needed to find her blaster and the door controls. The door slid shut, causing another round of shouts from the troopers. Darkness swallowed the room again.

A stormtrooper called out, "Show yourselves, or we will _not_ hesitate to open fire!"

Leia smirked. "If _you_ open fire, _I'll_ open fire."

The lights turned on, and Leia found a blaster pointed directly at her head.

"Children shouldn't play with guns," said the trooper. Leia only smiled.

"Who said I was _playing_?" She spun to the left, dropped to her knees and shot the blaster right out of the Imperial's hand. The lights clicked off.

Luke jumped off the top bunk and landed on an unsuspecting trooper's back.

Then the chaos started.

With Luke clinging tightly to his back, the stormtrooper swung around in every direction, bumping into the others. One more stormtrooper began approaching Leia, but she pointed her blaster at the leak and fired.

The small coolant leak turned into a steady flow. Leia lifted a hand and maneuvered the chemical liquid into a semicircle, then dropped it. Flames latched onto the curved line of liquid, and suddenly, a half-ring of fire lit up the room.

Stormtroopers scattered every which way, avoiding the flames. Luke had somehow acquired the trooper's gun, and was now randomly firing it in no particular direction.

He left the soldiers and grabbed Leia, pulling her with him towards the ring of flames. The twins must've had the same idea in mind, because the flames parted twice as fast as they normally would've.

They stumbled through the opening, closed the semicircle, and backed up against the wall.

A red blaster bolt whizzed through the fire, narrowly missing Luke's foot.

"Oh, they wanna play that game?" Leia asked, glaring daggers through the curtain of fire and smoke.

She and Luke huddled down and exchanged fire with the stormtroopers. By this point, everyone in the room was yelling about some thing or another, and the lights were still off, which made matters worse.

The stormtroopers didn't dare get closer to the fire, for fear that the Princess would make it spread to them. So, for now, they settled for firing from a safe distance.

Blaster bolts collided with the wall, and Luke briefly wondered why they didn't make holes like Leia's blaster had. Was the Force part of it?

That train of thought was gone in seconds, because the metal door slid open, and all the soldiers abruptly went quiet.

Soft, precise footsteps got closer to the ring of fire, stopping only inches away.

The flames parted, and there, in all his terrifying glory, stood Lord Darth Vader.

"Thank you, men. But I'll take it from here."

 **A/N: So that's spontaneous chaos. Don't try this at home, kids! :p**

 **Also, I don't know if you've picked this up yet, but the Force actually has helped those crazy kids out more than once. Sometimes they realized it, sometimes they didn't. For example, how do you think the twins just *happened* to stumble across Han's ship all those times? So, that's just one instance. There are many others, and kudos to you if you can find them all XD**

 **Hope you enjoyed that chapter, and I'm sorry for the wait. Next chapter will be up on time, unless the world implodes, so no worries! ;) And next chapter is...CHAPTER 50! WHAAAAT. This story has been going on for more than a year! In fact...I think I uploaded Chapter 13 around this time last year. So WOW.**

 **At any rate, have an awesome day! Drop a review if you wanna, and I'll see you next time!**

 **-Lia**


	50. Chapter 50: Q & A, Minus the A

**A/N: Maybe no one noticed that I skipped a week again. *checks* Nope, they definitely noticed. WELP.**

 **Hey guys! This A/N is gonna be a short one. I had one written out already, but then the computer glitched and it got deleted, so here we are. Regardless, thank you so much for your patience! AND WHOA THIS IS CHAPTER 50! We've come so far - might as well keep it up XD**

 **changingdestiny40: I'll hafta respond to your review over PM because my email won't let me see your review :p So keep an eye out for that, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **Rainbowdea: Were you yelling at the twins, Vader, the cliffhanger, or life in general? :p Either way, I feel ya XD**

 **OOOOKAY fellas, here we go. If you like bucketloads of Vader Feels (ALL THE FEELS), then this is the chapter for you. Seriously. Lotsa feels.**

 **LET'S GO!**

 **WHEEEEEEEEEEEE!**

Luke was hiding as far behind Leia as the small space would allow. However, he was genuinely surprised at how calm she looked. The Dark Lord was standing over her, and she was _smiling._ What kind of cuckoo bird _smiled_ when they could die in the next five seconds?

" _What_ is the meaning of all this?" Vader demanded, as the stormtroopers happily scurried out of the room. The lights were on now, which took away _some_ of the intensity of the situation, but not enough.

Leia carefully stood to her feet, making sure to avoid the wild flames on either side.

"Well," she began, "I didn't feel like waiting for you to come back to the cell. And I want answers."

"Answers to _what_?"

"To _everything!_ Why were you looking for me? Why did you act so nervous back in the cell? How come I feel this weird emotion in you that wasn't there before?"

At the last question, Vader stepped back. She could feel it, too? Once again, it was something he should've expected, but it came as a shock nonetheless.

After several seconds of silence - in which Luke stood up as well - Vader took both siblings by the arm and unceremoniously dragged them through the opening in the fire. Leia walked obediently (almost _eagerly_ ) alongside him, but Luke was harder to calm down. He thrashed and pulled and dug his heels into the floor. Eventually, when it wasn't working at all, he gave up, sending Leia a, _Don't make me regret this._

She replied, _Don't worry, nothing bad's gonna happen to us._

Vader turned his head in her direction, and Leia wondered if he could hear the twins talking through the Force. Maybe it would be better to be quiet for a while.

Darth Vader's iron grip led them down countless sleek hallways, taking so many turns that Leia thought they were going in circles. For a moment, Leia considered reading Vader's mind, but the more she thought about it, the riskier it sounded. Eventually, she abandoned the idea altogether and just trotted faster to keep up with Vader's pace.

Following several more minutes of heavy silence, Leia ventured to ask, "Where are we going?"

Without looking at her, Vader answered, "A place we can have a civilized conversation."

"Oh, okay. . .so, if it's gonna be a civilized conversation, I have the right to ask questions, right?"

Vader hesitated before responding. "If you must."

Leia pumped her free arm in victory, peeking behind Vader's back to give Luke a thumbs up. The blond boy replied with a fearful grimace, but Leia only rolled her eyes and faced forward again.

It wasn't until she refocused on the hallway that Leia realized their odd trio had come to a stop in front of a thick, metal door. The Dark Lord let go of Luke and Leia for a moment to mess with the door's controls. He must've figured they were smart enough to stay put, and he was right.

Vader did some fancy button-pushing to open the door (none of which Leia was savvy enough to understand) and dragged the twins inside with him. Once inside the dark room, Darth Vader palmed the door shut and flicked on a light. The dim light didn't do much to illuminate the large space, but Vader didn't seem to mind.

As the Sith lord disappeared somewhere across the room, Leia fearlessly strayed away to explore as much of the area as she could. Luke noticed she was suddenly missing and rushed to catch up with her.

"This is a _wonderful_ mess you got us into," Luke commented, following Leia as she toured the room.

"Oh, don't be so worried. This is what I've wanted for a whole _month_! I'm finally gonna get the answers I've been looking for!"

"It's _Vader_. Do you honestly think he's going to tell the _truth_ about anything you want to know?"

Before Leia could answer, Vader's booming voice said, "I assure you, I will _truthfully_ answer as much as I can. But I do not promise explanations to _everything._ "

The twins turned in every direction, but Vader still appeared to be on the other side of the room. They shared a glance, impressed.

"Well, a few answers are better than none," Leia said, shrugging happily. She hopped off again, observing the room and all it contained.

Just a few steps into her journey, the shadow of a large, black obstruction blocked her way.

"Whoa," Luke said, coming up behind his sister. "What in the galaxy is _that_ thing?"

Leia edged closer to it. It looked like it was made of metal, like nearly everything else on the ship. There were two halves, which Leia discerned from a jagged, horizontal line of separation across the middle. She flicked the metal, and it resonated just enough for the girl to hear.

"It's hollow," she declared.

"But is it _empty_?"

"Doubt it. I don't feel like finding out, though." Leia wandered away from the black chamber, motioning for Luke to step back from it as well.

In a few minutes, when Vader still hadn't returned, Leia plopped down on the floor with a sigh.

There were so many things she needed to ask him - so many things she needed to _know._ The past month had been an endless cycle of chaos. One thing after another. New questions just developed every day.

Leia was sure she had probably possessed a plan at some point. Or maybe she never did. Everything after (literally) running into Han at Mos Eisley was a blur. That's when Leia had first heard of Vader's rather extensive search for her. The thought of it had seemed idiotic at the time, but then she'd remembered the Toolbox Incident.

Somehow, that toolbox had toppled right off the shelf. . .and Leia was given a glimpse of it before it happened. That was probably not her first vision, but the Princess couldn't recall any from her younger years.

Things after that were somewhat fuzzy in Leia's mind. Driving away in the speeder; escaping the Lars homestead when stormtroopers showed up; discovering that she was Luke's twin sister (that was her favorite memory); traveling to Ben Kenobi's house; practicing using the Force, early in the morning, in the desert; boarding the Imperial shuttle; the shuttle's explosive coolant leak; and finally, arriving on _The Devastator._

Now, after weeks of endless travel and drained energy reserves, she had reached the final destination. Darth Vader was in the same room as her. And she was still alive! Leia considered that an unqualified success.

However, the Star Destroyer was probably not her literal final destination. Eventually, she'd have to go home.

That thought made Leia's stomach hurt. It's not that she didn't want to see her family again. . .but what was she going to _tell_ them? She had decided long ago that Luke would be kept a secret. Her family, if they knew she had found out, would never let the twins be together again. And that was a life Leia didn't want to live.

How was she supposed to get home? _Would_ she get home? What would her parents think of all the "adventures" she had gone on?

Leia groaned as she realized she most likely wouldn't be allowed out of the palace ever again.

What did Past Leia think would happen once she ran away? That things would instantly be solved? That she'd never have any problems ever again? Well, she'd been horribly wrong. In fact, the problem was still not solved, and now there were a dozen new ones on top of it.

"Aren't you scared?" Luke suddenly asked, snapping Leia back into reality.

She turned to him. "You asked that a couple days ago."

"I know. But you seem really really calm, considering. . .you know."

Leia turned her eyes to the floor, and her answer was so quiet that Luke barely heard her.

"Yeah. On the outside, I'm brave. But on the inside? Luke, I'm terrified."

"Oh. . ."

"But you know what? I don't have time to be afraid. And neither do you. Which is why I act so calm on the outside. I _do_ want answers, and I _do_ know he won't hurt us. That's just not enough to erase _all_ the fear. Because don't pretend you don't feel it."

Leia was right. A cold, dead feeling clouded the room. The twins had felt it the moment they entered the area, but now it was more intense. Specifically, the black center chamber had waves of darkness rolling off of it.

The feeling was bone-chilling. It made Leia's heart beat faster, her head hurt, and her palms clammy. Every time Luke and Leia were near Vader, the feeling worked its way into their minds. But now, in what Leia assumed was Vader's private quarters, the black, lifeless chill was abnormally strong.

Luke smiled sadly. This raw, emotional Leia was a rare phenomenon. He silently commended her for staying so strong, even in the (literally) darkest times. She was really something else.

"Hey, well, if it helps, remember what we've done so far. You've stolen speeders, intimidated a bartender, defeated Imperial troops, survived _two_ chemical fires, and came up with a ton of awesome ideas to get to Vader. You travelled all the way across the galaxy! You're, like, the coolest, bravest, most talented person I know. And ya know what else? You have every right to be afraid. In fact, with everything you've gone through so far, you deserve to drop that façade for a while. Seems like it would be tiring."

Leia looked up and smiled. "Yeah."

"Vader is gonna answer everything you want to know. . .just think of what an accomplishment that is in itself! How many other people do you think have pulled a stunt like that off?"

"Yeah. I guess you're right."

"And if Vader. . ." Luke frowned and glanced around the room. "Hey, where _is_ Vader?"

Darth Vader sat in the room's only chair, head in his hands. Something was not right. It was making Vader's head throb and his breathing quicken. A thousand different thoughts tumbled through his head.

What was _wrong_ with him?

Then, he knew.

He recognized the feeling. It hadn't happened in a multitude of years, but Vader couldn't decide whether he welcomed this feeling or not.

The Light. It pushed and pulled, slowly penetrating the Dark Side's defenses. Vader groaned and fought against it. He had to resist. Just because his children were here, and they reminded him of a past he'd rather forget. . .that didn't give him an excuse to brush that closely to the Light.

After a few more moments of agonizing mental struggle, Vader could breathe normally again. He relaxed, leaning against the chair back. Those battles were no longer a regular occurrence, so this one had drained nearly all his strength.

Luke and Leia couldn't stay on the _Devastator_ , but they couldn't really leave either. If the twins went back to Tatooine, they would be separated again. Could Vader really live with the knowledge that he split up his only children? His only reminder of _her_?

Did the twins have their own plan? Perhaps he should ask them. . .

With a jolt of panic, Darth Vader realized he had left Luke and Leia to their own devices. Quickly, he rose from his seat and strode back into the open area of the room. He found the twins sitting on the floor, looking tired.

"Princess," Vader said. Leia looked up at him.

"What?"

"If you still have questions, I suggest you ask them now."

"Oh. Right." Leia turned to her brother, and Vader noticed the way their eyes locked. Their bond was truly remarkable.

"So," Leia began. "We should start at the beginning. The first time you. . .well, when did you first know I was. . .Force-sensitive?"

Vader answered with little hesitation. "Weeks ago. I felt a disturbance in the Force, and I traced it to you."

"Does anyone else know?" She curled into a tighter ball on the floor. "Does the _Emperor_ know?"

This time, the Dark Lord hesitated. His brief pause made Leia's stomach churn a very unhealthy amount.

"He knows, doesn't he?"

"Not exactly," Vader said carefully. "He knows I suspected you, but I do not believe he has received a confirmation."

Leia let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. Luke seemed equally relieved.

Heavy silence encompassed the room while Leia thought through her next questions. Something told her that Vader knew a lot more than he'd admit on his own.

To her surprise, Leia found herself deviating from her original plan once again.

"Since you're with the Empire and all. . .I guess you would know that Imperials have been watching me. Like, my entire life."

For a long second, Vader didn't reply. Finally, he said, "I wasn't aware."

Leia's eyes narrowed. "Oh you weren't, huh? So the _second in command_ of the Empire isn't aware of what's going on in his own organization? I find that hard to believe."

Now Vader seemed slightly annoyed as he said, "Princess, the Empire has _not_ been observing you. . .and if it has, I was not notified."

"We found a datapad in that shuttle," Luke spoke up. "It had plenty of pictures on it - pictures of Leia. Where did those come from?"

When Darth Vader found his words, they sounded the tiniest bit concerned, but the twins ignored that fact.

"It would indeed appear that someone has been watching you. But it was not the Empire, and that is all I know."

Defeated, Leia sighed and stood slowly to her feet. Vader stayed a careful distance away.

"Then why were you looking for me? I mean, I know it's because I can use the Force, but don't tell me that's the end of it. You had some sort of motivation."

The Princess's boldness caught Vader off guard, as it had been ever since they'd met.

 _So much like her. . ._

"So much like _who_?" Leia asked, stepping closer. Vader didn't realize he'd spoken those words out loud, and now he was in a fine mess.

Silence followed. Luke stood as well - this new development intrigued him. However, Darth Vader stayed quiet and unmoving. The twins had never felt the Dark Lord be so. . .afraid.

"Someone I knew long ago."

"I know. But _who_?"

Darth Vader cringed, forcefully shoving back the barrage of mental images. They pummeled him, making his mental defenses weak and useless. And Leia, sensing this shift, grabbed the chance.

The word that filled her mind sent a tingle up her spine.

"Padmé?" she asked, confused.

Vader visibly stumbled backwards and held the wall for balance. Just _hearing_ that name made him sick, but what really shocked him was how easily Leia had found his most cherished, hidden thought. He didn't like it at all.

But he supposed she was expecting an answer, so Vader replied (resignedly), "Yes."

He also didn't like the way the twins were looking at each other. They didn't know. . .did they?

"Uh. . .I don't know how to tell you this," Leia began, an odd expression on her face.

Luke finished her sentence, ". . .but Padmé was our _mom_."

Vader's head was swimming. No, it was worse than that. He was _drowning._ Drowning in that painfully familiar sea of memories. The sea's glassy surface rippled and shimmered, willing Vader to come back.

The Sith lord realized with a pang of emotion that the sea wanted _Anakin_ back, not Vader. Not that vile, black-hearted, selfish monster.

Swirling memories surrounded Vader, pulling him under. For a moment, he almost considered giving up and letting the current carry him away. Maybe then he could end this battle. After all, without _her_ , what was the point of being alive?

Then he realized he had two other reasons to stay sane. Two pinpricks of light in his otherwise dark world. The twins, though troublesome at times, were his children. He had to be there for them. . .at least, for a little while.

Darth Vader woke with a start. A cold sweat coated his body, and his thoughts were tangled in a knot. . .much like his stomach.

It was the morning after his disastrous conversation with the twins. Vader had made a crucial mistake in letting his guard down, and now Luke and Leia were one dangerous step closer to discovering their parentage.

Yesterday, Vader had rushed to make amends after his slip. He had said that he and Padmé were friends before they "went down different paths". Which was, in a sense, true. But that didn't stop the painful memories from flooding back.

 _...You're breaking my heart! You're going down a path I cannot follow!_

Vader hastily buried that memory somewhere deep.

Surprisingly, the twins hadn't asked questions. They _did_ hesitate to nod in understanding, though, which was worrying. And even afterwards, Vader didn't miss Leia's odd, suspicious look that she gave him.

Then, Leia had asked dozens of rapid-fire questions about the twins' real parents, none of which Vader answered. In the end, Darth Vader had just made up a pathetic excuse and ordered his stormtroopers to escort the children to a room.

And not another cell. Vader had come to a rather impulsive decision about where the twins would stay; they were to be given a room on the _Devastator_ where they would stay until Vader found another solution.

He had no idea how long the twins would be aboard, but it would most likely be a while. Possibly too long. The Emperor could discover them any moment, and if that happened, it was game over. The twins were strong, but they were still untrained. Against the Emperor, they wouldn't stand a chance - he would seduce them to the Dark Side without any difficulty.

And Vader would _not_ let the Emperor take his children away from him again.

In fact, Darth Vader was on his way to see the twins right now. Or, that had been his original plan. He hadn't expected to fall back asleep and get lost in a dream.

So, Vader took the necessary time to put on his helmet (curse the wretched device) and stalked out the door.

"Leia, there's a _food replicator_ over here!" Luke called from across the room.

Leia rolled her eyes with a smile.

Yesterday, her conversation with Vader had been. . .well, less than satisfactory. Instead of getting the answers she wanted, she was ignored yet again.

At least she knew the Empire wasn't spying on her. . .although, that raised another pile of irritating questions.

And then there was the matter of Padmé. Vader had definitely seemed uncomfortable talking about her, yet he'd declared they were friends years ago. Something about his explanation didn't sound right. Leia just couldn't find a specific problem with it.

It was weird that the Dark Lord may have known her mother. . .but had Vader been evil back then? Probably not. Leia's mother would've never associated herself with Darth Vader if he'd been with the Empire. More questions with no answers.

Anyway.

Two stormtroopers had entered the room and led her and Luke to the room they were currently in. Leia wasn't thrilled with the arrangement, because it felt unnaturally _permanent_ to be given a bedroom. Something told her that they might be staying more than one night.

The room wasn't particularly special. It was sleek and mostly black, to match the rest of the ship. Go figure.

A double bed sat against the right wall, flanked on either side by a small black table. Each bedside table held a tiny lamp that gave off limited light, and a scratchy black rug lay in the center of the floor.

On the left wall was a dark, shiny counter with the food replicator on top, as well as a stack of dishes. The twins had yet to use any of the kitchen appliances, because Leia's stomach was in too many knots to eat anything. Luke, on the other hand, seemed ready to eat a whole bantha.

Leia left her brother to play with the food replicator. There was something else she wanted to do first.

In the far left corner, a black desk had a computer on top of it. Leia had been thinking about things, and that console could be very useful to her.

The Princess stepped over to the desk and plopped down in the stiff chair. After turning on the computer, Leia quickly made her way to the Holonet. She considered searching for a more secure network, but then again, this was an Imperial ship. Vader probably didn't _need_ a secure network.

Leia found the search bar and typed, **Anakin Skywalker**.

At first, nothing happened. The screen buffered for a moment, displaying an annoying "loading" icon.

Several seconds passed, and Leia was about to try again when the screen blinked and showed a ton of articles to choose from.

The first link Leia clicked on ( **Anakin Skywalker - The Hero With No Fear** ) didn't open. Instead, the screen lit up with a text box that said, " **This site is restricted** ". The next one said, " **Content has been blocked** ". Another read, " **Due to Imperial protocol, this site cannot be reached** ".

Leia growled and thumped her fist on the desk. Why were all the articles blocked?

The young girl tried a dozen more links, all showing a similar "restricted" note. All the Holonet information about Anakin Skywalker had been either erased, blocked, or hidden. But _why_?

"That's weird," Luke said from behind Leia, starling her so bad that she nearly fell out of the chair.

"Yeah," she said, ignoring the urge to clobber him, "seriously. It's like the Empire doesn't want anyone to know Anakin ever existed."

"Makes sense, I guess."

Leia looked severely confused. "Why?"

"Well, think about it. The Empire took over and didn't want any traces of the Jedi left. Anakin was one of the most powerful Jedi that ever lived, or at least, Ben says so. That's gotta account for something."

"True. . ." But something still didn't feel right. Luke and Leia were able to access articles about the Jedi from Leia's own datapad. Clearly, _all_ the Jedi-related information hasn't been deleted.

"I wonder why the Empire blocked _Anakin_ and nothing else? Wouldn't they prefer to just get rid of _all_ the Jedi memorabilia?" Leia asked, still clicking links and getting disappointing "blocked" messages.

Then, suddenly, Leia turned off the computer, turned to Luke, and speedily rattled off, "Vader's coming down the hall I felt him already act natural!"

Unfortunately, both siblings had the same idea. Leia leapt onto the bed to pretend she'd been there all along, but Luke jumped over there as well. So, the twins ended up in a pile on the way-too-firm bed.

When the door slid open seconds later, Vader seemed mildly surprised and a little confused. But nevertheless, he closed the door and strode to the bed.

Luke was busy untangling his arm from Leia's hair. They pretended that they didn't notice Vader was in the room.

Once a few more moments of pointed ignoring passed by, Darth Vader said, "I must discuss something with you."

Leia looked up from her sprawled-out position. "Which one of us?"

" _Both_ of you, if at all possible."

The smug siblings finally sat up and gave Vader their best "attentive" faces. He proceeded.

"It has come to my attention that you will be aboard my ship for more time than I had originally pla-"

"Aww, really?" Luke complained, flopping backwards. "We're never getting outta here. It's Tatooine all over again."

Leia gave an unnecessarily dramatic sigh. "He's right. We can't stay here forever, you know. We have homes. And families. And lives to live."

"None of which you seem to have," Luke cut in.

Vader bristled.

"Now is not the time for your nonsense. In three days, I must leave on a very important journey to Coruscant."

"How come?" Leia asked, swinging her heels off the side of the bed.

"I have important business to attend to. As I'm sure you know, Empire Day is in seventeen standard days. I will be on Coruscant for two weeks, overseeing preparations for the celebration."

"Why? So you can choke some people on the decorating committee?" Luke asked, holding back a laugh. Leia looked away, hiding a smile.

Darth Vader was getting impatient.

" _No_. Regardless, I leave in three days, and there is no possible way you can be delivered back to your homes in that amount of time."

Now he had their attention.

To Leia's surprise, Luke spoke up first.

"Wait. _You_ want to bring _us_ back _home_?"

Vader leaned closer. "Was I unclear?"

"No," Luke mumbled, looking down. "I just. . .never mind."

"Excellent. As I was saying, I leave for Coruscant in _three_ days. I will be gone for _two weeks_. That leaves a very disturbing amount of time for you two to cause a surplus of unwanted problems."

"Geez," muttered Leia. "You accidentally light a coolant fire in the shuttle _one_ time. . ."

"That brings me to the next topic," Vader interrupted, his tone creeping slowly towards Low Tolerance mode. "Because you managed to destroy my squadron's best shuttle, and with my own under repair, there is no ship to take you on."

"What?" Leia asked, thinking back to the first coolant leak. "I didn't think the shuttle was _destroyed_. . ."

"It isn't. But there is _extensive_ damage to the front control panel, which, as you know, contains the necessary _controls_ to pilot the ship."

Finally backed into a proverbial corner, Leia remained silent.

"Therefore," Vader continued, "you will have to wait a minimum of seventeen days before a shuttle will be available to escort you back to Tatooine."

Leia picked up on a slight hesitation when Vader was about to say "Tatooine". But she figured now wasn't the best time to mention it.

" _Seventeen_ days?" Luke all but wailed. " _No_ ships will be available for _seventeen days_?!"

"Unfortunately."

With an exasperated groan, Luke slid backwards on the bed again, lying down to glare at the ceiling.

Leia had been busy in her own head, but when she focused back on reality, she found Darth Vader staring at her expectantly.

"Uh. . .it seems like an awful long time. . .but if it's the only way, I suppose we don't have a choice."

She couldn't tell if Vader was happy with that answer or not, but he seemed externally content.

Before he turned to exit the room, the Dark Lord pointed a finger at Leia.

"One more thing - you must teach your brother how to block his Force-signature. Immediately."

Leia was beyond confused. "Huh? But I don't even know how to-"

"Yes, you do. You are doing it as we speak. You have been, on and off, for two days. Teach him, or it will be too late."

With that piece of rather unhelpful advice, Vader briskly left the room, closing the door behind him.

A few minutes of tense silence followed the Sith lord's departure. Leia was unsure of what to say, and Luke had no idea what Vader had meant. Perhaps Leia didn't, either.

"Wow," the Princess said after more uncomfortable silence. "I think he's right."

This was not the response Luke was expecting to come from his sister, but at least she seemed calm.

"How? What was he talking about?" inquired the blond boy.

"He wants me to show you how to block your Force-signature. . .which is our presence, sort of. Force-sensitives can feel _other_ Force-sensitives through their "Force-signature". Like a. . .tracking device, but with the Force."

Luke looked slightly lost, but he asked, "What does have to do with me? Or you?"

Leia was silent again for a while. Then, through a discouraged sigh, she replied, "I had _no_ idea that I was blocking my Force-signature. But I guess I have been. And Vader wants me to teach you how to do it."

Luke was starting to mentally piece the situation together. Even when he knew why Vader would request such a thing, Luke asked his sister for a confirmation.

She responded with, "If Vader is this concerned, the Emperor must be close to finding out we're here."

"Vader? _Concerned_? Seems kinda uncharacteristic of him, don't you think?"

"True. . ." Leia trailed off, taking on a distant look. But before Luke could ask what she was thinking about, Leia was talking again.

"Either way, I don't want the Emperor to know we're here. I think we should give it a try, if we wanna stay alive."

Solemn silence fell on the room for a long second. The twins both knew that if the Emperor discovered their presence, they didn't stand a chance.

"Alright," Luke said, sliding to the floor. "Let's try it. Wait - you don't know how to teach that, do you?"

Leia looked sheepish. "Nope. But it's worth a shot!"

So with determination, Luke and Leia sat down for a very busy morning.

 **A/N: Hey, so how'd ya like it? Lemme know in a review if you want ;)**

 **So, RECAP! Leia finally sorta got a chance to ask Vader questions, and it backfired majorly, much like everything else they've done so far. Another Vader QA will appear shortly in another chapter, so geez, I wonder what could go wrong :P**

 **Also, Vader is leaving to prepare for Empire Day (which also is the twins' birthday...) and will be leaving the twins on the Star Destroyer while he's gone. He wants Luke to be able to hide his Force-signature so that Palpatine *cue the "BOOOOO"s* doesn't pick up on his presence. Same for Leia, actually, but apparently she can already shield herself pretty well. I wonder what else she doesn't know she can do...?**

 **So, hopefully the next update will be much sooner than this one was, heh. And once again, DANG, we made it to Chapter 50! That's the cause for a celebration! *throws confetti***

 **See you guys next time! xoxo**

 **-Lia**


	51. Chapter 51: When in Space

**A/N: Wowee wow wow, welcome back to My Life as Leia! Chapter 51 is ready to GOOOO!**

 **I will admit there isn't much action in this one, but there IS some Vader-twins interaction, some of Vader's deepest thoughts, and a glimpse into Leia's rare "girly" side! So hopefully that makes up for the lack of action, haha XD**

 **I hope you've all had a great couple weeks! I'm not super pumped to start school on the 28th, because when it starts, I'll have less time to post chapters. Granted, I can count on my fingers how many chapters we have left...but still.**

 **Okay, time for review responses!**

 **Nobodythestormcrow: Thank you! 50 chapters and counting XD Yeah, Vader and children don't usually mix, but hey, there seems to be no avoiding it this time :p As for Admiral Piett, I'm not sure if he's there or not. Maybe! Trust me, Luke and Leia will be plenty busy, hehe.**

 **gothamfangirl: YAYYYY! THANK YOUUUU! That means a lot ^_^"**

 **Alright buddeez, time to get this show on the road! I hope you enjoy!**

 **WHEEEEEEEEE!**

"How do I know if it's working?" Luke asked, his blue eyes squeezed firmly shut. Leia sat across from him, trying her best to remain as patient as possible. It was turning out to be a hopeless endeavor, however, because she had absolutely no idea what she was doing.

Vader had suggested (more like _ordered_ ) that Leia teach Luke how to hide his Force-signature. The Emperor was apparently close enough to potentially sense the twins' presences. And, to top off the stack of irritating things to deal with, Darth Vader had told Leia that she was _already_ hiding her signature!

"I don't knowwww," Leia groaned, letting her head fall back against the side of the bed. "Like I said - I'm not a teacher! I don't even know how _I'm_ doing it, much less how to show _you_."

There was something else that was bothering Leia, although she wasn't about to tell Luke.

Her mind was constantly wandering back to the short discussion she'd had with Vader about Padmé. It sent chills up her spine thinking about her mother being _friends_ with the Dark Lord of the Sith.

Of course, there was always the possibility that Vader was good at some point. He couldn't have been this monster in a suit for his whole life, could he?

But that wasn't what bothered Leia the most. While Vader had been giving his hasty excuse, an idea had formed in Leia's mind. It was a terrifying, disgusting, unbelievable thought, but the Princess couldn't just ignore it.

While she'd snatched that oh-so-brief glimpse into Darth Vader's head, Leia gathered more than one piece of information. She'd heard the distinct word "Padmé ", but she'd also _felt_ something.

Vader's emotions had seemed to momentarily extend to Leia - whether that was from being in his mind or not, she didn't know. But she'd felt a very powerful emotion. Happiness, exuberance, desire, and admiration, all squished into one extremely prominent wave of passion.

She'd felt _love._ Or, more accurately, _Vader_ had felt love. For Padmé. And it was mildly unnerving.

So, did Vader love Padmé? As in, past tense? Was he just associating that memory to that particular feeling? Or was it something that dug even deeper?

As far as Leia knew, her biological mother had died very shortly after giving birth to the twins. Did Vader know that Padmé wasn't alive anymore? And what was their relationship with one another?

It would be much too strange if Vader and Padmé had been. . .previous lovers. But what about Anakin? Did Anakin steal Padmé from Vader? Is that why all the information about him was restricted?

Then, another questionable idea rose from the depths of Leia's baffled mind. It was entirely possible that. . .

NO.

No, Leia's mind hit a roadblock. She refused to take that train of thought. In fact, for good measure, Leia imagined the idea dropping into a metal safe. She envisioned a huge key locking the safe, then she mentally threw the secure object off a very steep cliff.

There was _no way_ that she'd even _think_ of that awful prediction. Never. Never _ever._

But. . .it was possible.

NO. No, no, no. Definitely not.

"Hello? Leia? You still here?" Luke's voice said, jerking Leia out of her scarring daydream.

"Oh! Yeah, don't worry, I'm still here. Just. . .lost in thought, I guess."

"Well, try to stay focused. I have no idea what to do now. A little help?"

"I _told_ you! I don't-"

Something clicked in her brain. Images flashed before her eyes, one of them being the locked metal safe with the dangerous thought inside of it. Why was that resurfacing. . . ?

"Wait!" Leia shouted, suddenly ecstatic. "I think I _do_ know how to teach you!"

Luke was confused, but eager for some actual progress.

"Alright," he said, smiling. "Shoot."

Leia scooted a little closer and instructed Luke to close his eyes again. He complied earnestly.

"Okay. Now. Imagine that your Force-signature is. . .uh, what's something that makes you really happy?"

Luke made a face. "Um. . .you?"

The Princess's reaction was somewhere between blushing and raising a skeptical eyebrow. But she realized that it might work even better that way.

"Uh, okay, great. So, imagine. . .ahem. . . _me_ , standing somewhere in your mind."

"Done."

"Is it clear? Like, can you really picture it?"

Luke nodded.

"Perfect. Now I need you to imagine a really strong wall. Make that wall come up and surround 'me'."

With a strange noise from his throat, Luke choked out, "Okay, got it."

His sister put a gentle hand on his shoulder, saying, "Wait, okay, relax. You're straining yourself too much. You need to be totally calm for this to work."

"But unless I focus really hard, I can't make the wall go up!"

Leia sat back and thought for a moment. This process was easy for her, probably because she'd been doing it since she was little. Her Father had always told her to "hide her gift" because people might come after her for it.

He took her out to sit on the ledge of the fountain one day, when she was in one of the first few years of school.

"Can you think of something that makes you happy?" Bail had said, patiently waiting for little Leia to respond.

"Um. . .Mama's garden!" she declared. She had been very proud of that answer.

"That's perfect!" Bail smiled. "And you wouldn't want anything to happen to Mama's garden, would you?"

"No!" Leia exclaimed fervently.

"Good. Now imagine a great big wall going all the way around the garden."

"Like the one we have right now?"

"Yes, exactly! Can you see it? Is it around the whole garden?"

"Uh-huh!"

"Wonderful. Now leave that wall there, and nothing bad will happen to your new garden. That wall will keep it safe. It will keep _you_ safe."

At the time, Leia had not understood the exact intent behind that exercise, but now she did. The garden represented her Force-signature, and Bail had managed to tie a mental thread between the garden and the conscience. That stone wall was keeping her Force-signature hidden all along, and she'd never known.

After the Toolbox Incident, something must have broken that tie between the garden and her mind. Because Vader had felt her presence full-force that very day.

"Pretend. . .pretend that the Emperor is after me! Yeah! I'm standing there, minding my own business, but then he feels my presence! What do you do?"

Luke visibly relaxed, taking on a much more determined expression.

"The wall! I put up the wall! So he can't get to you, right?"

"Yep!"

A few agonizingly silent seconds ticked by. Then Luke opened his eyes, blinked once, and grinned.

"I think I did it!" he exclaimed victoriously. "Where'd ya get an idea like that, anyway?"

"My Father taught me. I always just imagine my Mother's garden. It's kind of like my happy place."

"Will the same method work every time?"

"I would assume so. But I've never really done it besides that one time."

Luke and Leia experimented with their new discovery for the next half hour. They soon found out that, despite their careful blocking, they could still sense each other's Force-signatures.

Hopefully, Leia speculated, the Emperor couldn't feel their presences.

When they bored of playing with Force-signatures, the twins began another (more thorough) exploration of their new room.

Besides the bedroom furniture and kitchen appliances, there was also a separate refresher, a large black armchair, and another closed door on the same wall that the bed sat against.

Luke was examining the extra door. "What do you think is in here?"

Leia moved to his side. "I dunno. Maybe it just leads to the room next door?"

Before the twins could find out, though, the entry door slid open. Luke and Leia whipped around to see, once again, the tall form of Lord Darth Vader.

Because he had been on the ship with them for a few days, the twins were not as suspicious of the Dark Lord. But the initial shock of seeing Vader standing in their doorway never quite seemed to go away.

He stepped in, palmed the door shut, and observed the room with a critical eye. When Vader noticed the twins against the left wall, he stalked over to them and paused a couple feet away.

"I see you've found the closet," he stated.

Luke and Leia exchanged a look.

Leia said, "Oh. Is that what this is?"

"Yes," was the simple reply. Then, for a few quiet seconds, Vader ceased talking. He appeared to be thinking long and hard about something. Neither twin had the courage to interrupt his thoughts with a question or comment, so they waited.

Finally, Vader said, "I've come to give you your instructions for the coming two weeks. I must depart for Coruscant  
in three days, and until then, I will be fulfilling other duties elsewhere.

"In my absence, you are not to leave your quarters-" the twins gaped at this- "or make excess noise, _or_ draw unnecessary attention to yourselves. This room's food replicator can provide you as many meals as you require, and the closet contains enough clothing for the both of you. They are your sizes, and they should be sufficient."

"Where'd you find time to-?" Luke began.

Vader cut him off. "I assigned one of my officers to pick up the clothing yesterday. Additionally, I have alerted my troops to the fact that you two are _guests_ on this ship until further notice. Therefore, should you need anything, you may contact one of the crew with this."

Vader held out an Imperial comlink, a bit shinier and newer than the one from Han.

Leia eventually reached out for the comm and took it. She had a question, though, and now seemed like a good time to ask it.

"Um. . .why aren't we allowed to leave the room?"

Vader stepped a little closer to reply, "Princess, if either of you leave this room, that gives the Emperor a very dangerous advantage. Which brings me to my next topic - the Emperor is _aboard this ship_ , in the case that you weren't already aware."

A sick feeling settled in the bottom of Leia's stomach. She had often wondered if the Emperor was on the _Devastator_ , although sometimes she thought he might have a Star Destroyer of his own. This crushing confirmation, however, extinguished any of Leia's false hopes.

She turned to Luke to see that he looked equally as downcast. Of course, they'd obviously both realized that this was a possibility, but still. The revelation left the twins feeling grim. And very nervous.

"The extensive size of this vessel should be enough to keep the two of you away from him. But in the _very unlikely-_ " Vader spun to look pointedly at the Princess, "-scenario that you cross paths, you are to tell him that you are recruits from the Academy."

"Wait, aren't we a little young to be Academy graduates?" Luke inquired. On Tatooine, the young boy had often dreamed of attending the prestigious Imperial Training Academy. Not anymore. Not after Leia had told him of the ruthless acts the Empire had committed.

"Theoretically," Vader replied. "But with the proper theatrics, you should be more than capable of convincing him." Again, Darth Vader shot the Princess a emphasized stare. "From what I have heard, you are both talented in deceiving and avoiding authority."

Leia smiled sardonically, but she secretly beamed at the sarcastic tone of voice that Vader was using. She mused that he seemed to be enjoying himself quite a bit. The Dark Lord probably (definitely) wasn't used to bossing children around.

"But you should not have any trouble avoiding the Emperor. As I have previously instructed, neither of you are permitted to leave this room, excepting extreme emergency situations. Do you understand?"

The twins nodded simultaneously.

"Good. You have more than enough time here ahead of you. I suggest you make yourselves comfortable."

With that final sentence, Vader spun on his heel and started for the door. But before he got there, Leia blurted out, "Wait!"

Darth Vader slowly turned back to gaze at her.

Now that she was in the spotlight, Leia fumbled for words.

"Uh. . .I was j-just wondering. . .well, you want to keep us away from the Emperor. Why? It seems kind of. . .uncharacteristic of you, that's all."

Vader faced the exit again, and for a few seconds, Leia thought he was going to walk out without answering. She was proven wrong when the Sith lord responded in an unusually quiet voice.

"I was your age once. I understand what it feels like to be. . .innocent. The Emperor does not have the right to take that away from you."

And he hurried out the door, closing it behind him.

A few moments passed, the weight of Vader's words still pressing down on the room. He had mentioned a concept that the twins had never paused to think about: his youth.

Of course, it was common sense that Vader would've been a child once, but that didn't make it any easier to imagine. Fantasies of Vader as a boy, happy, young, and carefree? Well, such things simply didn't exist. At least, they _used_ to not exist.

Now, Luke and Leia were finding themselves picturing the Dark Lord as an innocent child, before he had been somehow corrupted by the Emperor and the Dark Side.

Leia knew a little more about Vader than her brother did, because her adoptive parents had taught her certain things. In addition, Ben Kenobi told the twins that Vader had been a pupil of his.

But none of that knowledge had prepared her for this. Especially when Luke broke the thick silence.

"So. The Dark Lord has a soft spot after all," he observed, raising surprised eyebrows at the closed door.

Leia nodded in mutual agreement.

This new development was definitely not helping the disturbing theory that had taken up permanent residence in Leia's mind. It was actually making matters significantly worse, despite being a good thing on its own.

Yet, Leia made sure to keep telling herself that she was just imagining things. It was all just a crazy delusion that she'd come up with out of sheer lack of mental stability. Which, honestly, didn't sound like a very safe excuse. Or an appealing one.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Luke asked, suddenly appearing in Leia's line of vision.

His voice snapped her out of the clutches of her own head. Leia smiled.

"I'm thinking that we won't be staying in this room for two weeks, that's what."

Luke's reaction was a bit delayed, because the words took a little longer to register. When he _did_ react, it was loud.

" _WHAT_?!"

"Shh!" Leia said, pulling Luke away from the door. There was a chance that someone could be listening outside.

In a more hushed tone, Luke continued.

"I can't believe you! Vader told us _exactly_ why we can't leave, and - I never thought I'd be saying this - I _agree_ with him!"

"Yeah, I get the caution and stuff. I understand it's kinda dangerous, but Luke, you know me. There's no way that I'm staying here for seventeen days. That's, like, _torture._ "

"That's not even a good excuse! Is restlessness really so bad that you hafta go get yourself killed?"

"I don't plan on dying, actually. I'm not leaving this ship until I know more about Anakin Skywalker, and there has to be _someone_ who can tell me something."

Luke's wide-eyed look of disbelief didn't phase Leia at all. She had her heart set on discovering more about her real father, and did Luke really have the guts to stop her? Probably not.

Apparently done with that conversation, Leia gave the door one last determined glance and began making her way to the closet.

She was admittedly impressed by Vader's newfound thoughtfulness, even though it _was_ slightly strange. After all, when had the Dark Lord ever been known to care about other people?

Well. . .besides Padmé, of course. But did that really count?

 _Ugh. I need to stop thinking about that._

Leia gripped the closet's knob (which seemed out of place among the other doors that opened mechanically) and turned it. The door made a clicking sound and swung open, giving Leia a full view of the closet's contents.

She didn't know what she'd been expecting, but Leia was very surprised.

"Oh. My. Gosh," Leia said, awestruck.

Compared to her own closet back on Alderaan, this one was smaller. But it was still a _big closet._ With a _lot_ of clothes.

Luke joined his sister. He didn't manage to say anything, though. Words failed both of them for a number of minutes.

This was, by far, the biggest closet Luke had ever laid eyes on. It was so enormous that ten people could easily stand inside - and they'd _still_ have enough room to walk around!

Sleek, black hangers hung from rods attached to all available walls. Each hanger held a different top, while a variety of bottoms were stacked on top of shelves. Two light fixtures dangled from the dark ceiling, giving the spacious area a faint yellow glow.

When Luke looked at Leia to see how she was reacting, he was shocked at her calm smile. Embarrassedly, Luke realized that she was probably _used_ to huge closets. Heck, she probably had one of her own!

However, that's _not_ why Leia was smiling. She was mostly just marveling at the mystery that was Darth Vader. A mystery indeed.

Finally, Leia said, "Well, I'm gonna change."

Luke watched as his sister disappeared into the closet and shut the door behind her.

 **~•~**

Vader hadn't thought he could really get any more conflicted. He also had to keep reminding himself that those kids were his _biological children._ The mere thought of leaving his children alone on his Star Destroyer was enough to make him nervous.

Luke and Leia were known to have rather. . .destructive tendencies. And that was when they were being _supervised._ What damage could they cause when left to themselves, on an Imperial Star Destroyer, with the Emperor on board?

Most likely too much.

Darth Vader firmly reassured himself with, _They can hide their Force-signatures. They'll be fine._

And, as an additional measure of security, Vader would check in with one of them every couple days. He could reach out to them through the Force and receive updates, should the need arise.

This new "fatherly instinct" of his was going to be a burden. Compassion and love were two emotions that Vader was learning to accept again. But not all the time. He still had a life to live, after all.

The Emperor was still his Master, the Dark Side was still his home, and the Empire was still where his loyalties lied. Forever, or until Vader died. Whichever came first.

Yet. . .whenever the twins were around, Vader couldn't help letting in that tiny sliver of Light. It was incredibly minuscule, mind you, but it was there. Luke and Leia were his children - his own flesh and blood. Their confidence, bravery, straightforwardness, humor. . .it all reminded Vader of Padmé. . .and sometimes even Anakin.

Once again, even _thinking_ that name gave Vader a sick feeling. However, that didn't make the statement any less true. The twins clearly had inherited their parents' personalities, as well as their physical appearances.

Being near the twins always stirred something in Vader's mind. He, being Vader, had already acknowledged the feeling, but he'd hastily banished it to the recesses of his mind. Luke and Leia reminded him of past times. Happier times. A time when everyone was at peace and Vader's life had been so. . . _perfect._

They gave him _hope._

And Luke and Leia were still so young. They had their entire lives ahead of them, and no doubt they would do incredible things someday. Luke had most likely been on Tatooine all his life, which meant he had seen far too little of the galaxy. As for Leia, she'd never been allowed to leave Alderaan (Vader knew this because Bail had _told_ him at a meeting many years ago).

The motives had been to keep the twins safe - to keep them safe from people like _Darth Vader._ Ironically, now the siblings were sharing a _ship_ with the Dark Lord. He almost smiled when he wondered what would happen if Bail knew his adopted daughter was actually living with Vader at the moment.

Luke and Leia were young, yes. But that didn't mean that they were stupid. As far as Vader could tell so far, those twins were actually smarter than people gave them credit for. Not to mention they were tremendously powerful in the Force. Combined, their power was greater than Darth Vader's!

The poor kids had no idea.

If the Emperor got a hint of that immense power, what would he do? Would he attempt to lure the twins to the Dark Side? Or would he get rid of them immediately to eliminate the rising threat? To Vader, both options were terrible.

The twins weren't immature, exactly. Just. . .sometimes they could be slightly _naïve._ Oblivious to the world crashing and burning right behind them, so to speak.

Not that Vader could really blame them. Luke and Leia had grown up sheltered from anything beyond their own homes. A life like that was bound to keep them innocent.

Ah, youthful innocence. Blissful ignorance. Comfortable oblivion. Vader had not experienced those things for many years. Not since he'd left his mother and his only home behind, and for what? To become a Jedi?

Those Jedi were incompetent and ignorant - though not an innocent ignorance. The signs could be _right in front of_ the Jedi, and they still wouldn't catch on. They were narrow-minded fools.

Sometimes Vader couldn't help but wonder what would've happened if he would have _stayed_ on Tatooine. Would he have ever seen Padmé again? Would they have fallen in love? And most importantly, would Vader have a family? A happy, friendly family that lived somewhere peaceful, where the twins could've been raised?

No, Vader couldn't think like that. In the grand scheme of things, he had ruined the lives of his children. He didn't deserve their affection. He didn't deserve to keep them, regardless of his own feelings. In fact, the twins deserved a real father. Not him.

 _Just keep telling yourself that,_ Vader thought bitterly _, and maybe someday you'll believe it._

With that thought sticking prominently in his mind, Vader turned down the hallway and braced himself for the journey ahead.

 **~•~**

"Ta-da!"

Leia burst out of the closet, adorned head to toe in a new outfit.

She wore a dusky red tunic with a dark brown strip across the middle. Some sort of flower-vine combo was embroidered up the side, and the tunic was paired with dark brown leggings. Leia's feet still didn't have shoes on them, but the grey socks she wore were definitely new as well.

Luke didn't know what reaction Leia wanted, but she seemed pleased, so he applauded.

"Well? Whaddya think? It's cool, right?" Leia asked, performing a neat twirl for emphasis.

Luke stammered, "Y-yeah! You look kinda. . .different."

Thankfully, Leia only laughed. "Well, duh! For the past how many days, I looked like I was a jungle explorer! At least now I'm wearing some _real_ clothes - no offense to your farming pants or anything."

"None taken." Luke rolled his eyes.

"You know, I'm really surprised by how well this fits! I mean, it's kinda weird that Vader knows my size and stuff, but hey, I'm not complaining. And the clothes are actually _colorful_! They're not just black! Ugh - please tell me there's a mirror in here," Leia rambled, diving back into the closet.

Meanwhile, Luke decided to give the gigantic space an exploration of his own. You know, assuming he didn't get lost in it or anything.

Interestingly enough, two minutes later, Luke _was_ lost. But he could hear Leia chattering gleefully to herself somewhere close by, so Luke found an outfit of his own and changed where he was.

Not a moment too soon, Leia came skipping along. She passed Luke, stopped, did a double take, and skittered back to her brother. Leia raised her eyebrows appreciatively.

"Wow, Luke, you look _good_."

He blushed at the compliment, shrugging.

"Ha, thanks. I gotta admit, this stuff is way more comfortable than my clothes on Tatooine."

Leia laughed with him for a moment, then paused again to look him up and down.

His fitted grey tunic and black pants made him look a little older. Kind of like a more professional, mature version of Luke. Yet, he still looked exactly like he always did. Probably a feat only Luke could pull off.

"Well hey, now that we both fit in a little better, I'm _dying_ to see who that comlink will contact," Leia said with a signature mischievous grin.

Out of habit, Luke nearly protested. Then he realized it was a decent idea; if they ever needed the person for real, it would be nice to know who they'd be dealing with.

So, he followed Leia out to the bedroom. She located the comm, picked it up, and activated it.

A few moments passed before Leia figured out how to actually _call_ whoever they were calling, but eventually, someone answered.

"Yes? Is this Princess Organa?" asked a male voice with a clipped accent.

Leia smiled at Luke. "The one and only."

"I see. Is there a problem? Do you require anything?"

"Just your lovely presence at this room, if you don't mind."

A pause.

The man sighed. "Fine. It's not like I have other more _important_ matters to deal with."

Leia laughed, "Perfect! Then I can expect you here in five minutes?"

"I don't see why not."

"Awesome! See ya then, pal!"

When the comlink was turned off, Luke gazed at his sister with confusion.

"Uh. . .'pal'? We don't even _know_ the guy!"

"So? We will in approximately five minutes!"

"Do you have a reason for inviting him over here?"

"The good things in life never come from a _reason._ Sometimes you just gotta do the thing because you want to."

Instead of arguing that Leia was making less than zero sense, Luke gave in and shrugged.

Even if they ended up lounging around every day in their room, Luke had a feeling that it was going to be a very eventful seventeen days.

 **A/N: And it will be. Although, I won't be posting a chapter for each of those 17 days. There'll be some time skips in there :p**

 **Also, I have the chapters pre-written, but I have a question: do you guys like** ** _lots_** **of** ** _short_** **chapters, or** ** _fewer_** **chapters that are just** ** _longer_** **? Because the ones I have now are a bit long. Just wondering if that's ok with you? ^_^**

 **So yeah, Leia can be girly and clothes-obsessed when she wants to be XD It's been a while since she's had decent clothes to wear, so I guess the "princess-y" side is showing a little bit.**

 **Any guesses on who the twins are about to meet? Im really excited to show you guys the scenes with him in it XD they're pretty funny, if I do say so myself.**

 **That said, I hope you all liked it! I always enjoy reading your reviews! :)**

 **Bye for now! xoxo**

 **-Lia**


	52. Chapter 52: Don't Tell Him

**A/N: *tiptoes through dark hallway***

 ***reaches a doorway***

 ***cautiously pokes head through doorway***

 ***hastily shoves chapter through doorway and dashes down the hall again***

 **...**

 **WELP. I don't even really know what to say...I mean...it's been, like, almost 2 months. I know I've taken hiatuses before, but this is just CRAZY.**

 **Life happens. And to be honest, life has been happening WAY HARDER than it normally does for me. Being in high school is bad enough, but I have like 6 other extracurricular things afterwards on different weekdays. Plus friends. Plus family. Plus getting a decent amount of sleep every night. I've had this chapter ready for EVER, and I just never had the time to actually sit down and just POST IT.**

 **So here I am! I apologize (one million jillion billion times) for the FREAKISHLY long wait. If you're reading this chapter and you've been following this story since the beginning, YOU DA REAL MVP! THANK YOU SO MUCH!**

 **REVIEWS! (it's been a while, so you might not know what you reviewed, haha)**

 **CzarZelinsky: Hi! Opinion noted, and thank you!**

 **Datperson (Guest): Hey there! Omg, thank you! Ooh, it seems we have a My Life as Leia veteran on our hands! Awesome! Thanks for sticking around! I hope the long wait didn't scare you off? :P**

 **changingdestiny40: (for your review on CH. 50) Hello hello! Thanks! Fifty chapters and counting...although it's wrapping up here real quick! No, the Empire hasn't been spying on Leia after all. Can't actually tell ya who HAS been creepily keeping tabs on her, but it will be explained...eventually XD  
The twins are 13, almost 14, haha. Well, yeah, Vader is definitely struggling. The Light is still in him somewhere - it'll just take the right amount of circumstances to turn him back. We'll see what happens with that :p  
Yep, their birthday is in (according to the story) about 17 days. On Empire Day, in fact!  
Ah yes, Vader's parenting issues. There are many of those, these days. He really wants to keep them around, trust me - but it'd be safer for them back on their respective planets.  
(your review on CH.51) : Thanks! :) Yeah, the Emperor is there. That oughta be fun.  
It might be Piett or Tarkin or Galen or Orson...or someone else XD  
Haha, no offense taken. Trust me - sometimes I find stories that I'm interested in more than my actual story XD so i totally understand, heh. Thanks for the reviews! Sorry for the long wait :p**

 **Guest: Hi! I agree! I think longer chapters are more fun to read, especially if I'm really liking the story, so opinion noted! You'll see who the mystery man is in this chapter, actually! And thank you! :)**

 **Phoebe Buffay (Guest): Aw, thank you! I'm glad you like the twins and their interactions - sometimes they're hard to write, so I appreciate the input!  
Yes, yes. Vader has many inner dialogues with himself about the twins :p He's a struggling parent, haha. Thanks so much for the review! I hope you'll stick around to see the ending! :)**

 **Nobodythestormcrow: Chapter-length-opinion noted! Thank you! Ya know, I always enjoy your reviews, because you perfectly capture the story with words. "...cheerfully imagining the hijinks and demonic behavior of the twins," I believe you said XD Plenty of hijinks and demonic behavior to come! I hope it doesn't disappoint! ;)**

 **There we have it, folks! Lots of reviews last chapter - THANK YOUUU! Y'all are the best.**

 **Again, I am infinitely sorry for the long wait. If you think you might have trouble remembering where we are in the story, I recommend reading chapters 50-51 again, just in case XD**

 **That said, you've waited long enough!**

 **Enjoy chapter 52!**

When Leia heard the sound of someone knocking on their door, she tumbled off the bed where she'd been waiting and sped to the entrance.

"Luke!" she called in the direction of the closet. "We have _company_!"

Leia realized that there could actually be someone very disagreeable outside that door. This was the Empire, after all. She wasn't familiar with any Imperial crew members, so she didn't know what face would meet her when she opened the door. Hopefully a friendly one.

"Who is it?" Leia asked whoever was behind the door. Of course, she was aware that it was probably the person they'd called with the comm, but you could never be too careful.

"I believe you. . .requested me? Through the comlink?" a voice said through the door.

Satisfied, Leia punched the controls for the door, watching it slide open.

She seized up the man standing just outside of the doorway. He wasn't short, but he wasn't tall either. His hair was dark and showing the beginnings of balding. Additionally, the man wore the standard grey uniform of an Imperial crew member, except his attire was sporting some colorful buttons and badges to show rank.

Most importantly, Leia noticed that this man did not appear to be carrying any weapons. There was also not a guard outside the door, which was unrelated to the topic but still good to know.

When the man didn't speak, Leia did.

"Uh, hi!" she tried.

"Hello," said the Imperial, sounding unimpressed.

"Do. . .do you wanna come in?"

"Not necessarily."

Leia frowned. She should've expected something similar to this, but it was still kind of irritating. The twins would have to be careful around this guy. Very careful.

"Well, come in anyway," Leia finalized, stepping aside to allow the man entry. He came reluctantly.

By now, Luke had found his way to Leia's side, and he was watching the man with a look resembling suspicion.

Leia pretended not to notice.

Once the man was far enough from the door, Luke closed it. Leia wasn't sure if that move was meant to be friendly or intimidating, but she pretended to ignore that too.

Instead, she transmitted, _What are you doing? He's gonna think you're creepy._

Luke replied almost immediately.

 _No, he won't. He's an Imperial, for Sith's sake! Plus, we need to see if we can trust him before we get too friendly._

 _You have to be kidding me._

 _No, I'm perfectly serious. You can't just trust everyone the second you meet them._

 _That's what I did with you, though. And now look at us._

Leia knew that playing the "twin" card was a dirty trick, but it was just about the only thing that Luke would be swayed by. However, he didn't respond to her.

But anyway - there was still an Imperial in the room.

Leia abandoned her conversation with Luke and flopped backwards onto the oversized bed. She turned her head towards the Imperial officer.

"Do you have a name. . . ?" she asked him.

 _Smooth,_ Luke quipped. Leia scowled in his general direction.

"Motti," said the man. He was standing a few feet away from the bed, hands clasped formally behind his back.

"Is that your first name or your last name?"

"That is irrelevant. You shall call me Lieutenant General Motti when I am forced to be around you. And that is the only-"

Leia interrupted, "What's a 'Lieutenant General'?"

"I- it's a military title, obviously."

"What makes it different from a plain old General?"

Motti was getting confused - Leia could tell from the way he was squinting at her.

Nevertheless, he replied, "A Lieutenant General is slightly lower than General. You see-"

"So you're a Lieutenant?"

"No! A Lieutenant General is-"

"And isn't a General kind of the same as Commander? And so if you're a Lieutenant General, which is also a General, are you a Lieutenant or a Commander? And isn't General ALSO the same as Admiral? What in the worlds is your position?"

Motti was thoroughly lost.

"I- it- well. . .I am a _Lieutenant General_ , and that is simply the end of it! If I fulfill Lord Vader's orders to look after you, he may be so gracious as to promote me to General, or even Admiral."

"Oh. Well, in that case, we'll make sure to be on our _best_ behavior."

Somewhere behind her, Luke cleared his throat very loudly. Another addition to the pile of things Leia was pretending to ignore.

"And what about you two?" Motti asked, his tone sounding like he was addressing a pair of slimy mynocks. "What shall I call you?"

Hadn't Vader told him their names? Perhaps the Dark Lord had just been too busy?

"Luke," replied the blond boy. "And she's Leia."

Now turning to Leia, Lieutenant General Motti narrowed his critical gaze and said, "You wouldn't happen to be _Princess_ Leia? The princess that every soldier on this ship has been searching for?"

Leia, upon hearing those questions, struggled to find words. She sat up and studied Motti very carefully.

"Who told you that?" she asked.

"Everyone on this vessel knows who you are. You've been Vader's prime interest for weeks."

That information was mildly unsettling. Of course Leia realized that _some_ people knew who she really was, but _everyone_?

"Does that include the Emperor. . . ?" Leia asked, as casually as she possibly could when asking a potentially life-or-death question.

Motti stared incredulously. "Does the Emperor know who you are? Of _course_ he knows who you are! But. . .I don't believe he is aware that you are _here._ "

 _You already knew that Emperor Palpatine knows who you are_ , Luke transmitted, sounding confused.

 _Yeah. I just wanted to make sure._

 _Leia, you_ ** _can't_** _trust this guy to tell the truth! He's-_

 _An Imperial, I know! I don't care! There's something about Motti. He's-_

"Excuse me, but you two stare at each other much too often. Please tell me that you won't be keeping that up while I'm here."

Motti's accented voice broke Leia's concentration, and the conversation between the twins abruptly ended.

Motti continued, "I must admit, I'm slightly curious as to what relationship you have with each other. You get along fairly well, do you not?"

"Uh. . ." Leia and Luke shared an inconspicuous glance, silently communicating the unspoken rule: never tell anyone that they're twins. Besides Han. And Chewie. And Ben Kenobi. And also the Dark Lord of the Sith.

But other than that, absolutely no exceptions.

"We're really good friends," Luke offered, holding his hand up for Leia to high-five. She eyed it with suspicion, not entirely sure where he was going with that, but complied.

"I see," Motti said, sounding only half-convinced. "And how did a member of the royal family of Alderaan come in contact with a. . ."

"Tatooine farm boy?" Luke finished. "Well, funny story-"

Leia, as subtly as possible, jabbed Luke's side with her elbow.

"We're _special_ ," she said through clenched teeth. Luke plastered on a fake smile and nodded for emphasis, simultaneously rubbing his ribs where Leia had elbowed him.

"Curious," Motti replied, peering at the twins through squinted eyes.

An extremely uncomfortable moment of silence passed before Leia clapped her hands together and said, "Well! Now that we have _that_ sorted out, I'd actually like to ask _you_ some questions!"

The Princess unashamedly grabbed Motti's arm and dragged him over to the black armchair. Then she shoved him down into a sitting position.

"What do you know about Anakin Skywalker?" Leia asked.

She knew that a question like _that_ had the potential to cause mass destruction on a number of levels. Asking about _Anakin Skywalker_? The man who Vader apparently despised with a deep, fiery passion? The person who's information had been either blocked or deleted from the Holonet? Yikes.

But she _had_ to know. Anakin Skywalker wasn't just a man. He was her _father._ She was bound and determined to obtain as many answers as she possibly could. Motti probably didn't know anything, but she couldn't stand not knowing. She wanted to be _sure._

Unfortunately, Motti offered no immediate reply. He only stared at Leia, a startled look on his face.

 _Wow, subtle_ , Luke transmitted.

 _Shut up_ , Leia replied, hotly.

She didn't back down, however. Leia managed to hold unwavering eye contact with the Imperial, and he gazed right back at her. All at once, his expression shifted.

"Anakin Skywalker is a myth," he said. Leia noticed his quick, nervous glance at the door, as if he expected Vader to burst in at any moment.

"No he isn't," Leia contradicted. "I already know he was a real person. In fact, there's proof. What do you _know_ about Anakin Skywalker?"

"Proof? I hardly see how-"

"Just answer!"

Some silence. Leia could feel her brother staring at her, wondering what exactly she was trying to accomplish.

Motti searched the Princess's brown eyes, trying to find any hint of weakness. He found none. Only stubbornness. She was serious about this - that much he could see. But why?

What could this young girl want with information about Anakin Skywalker? How had she even learned the name?

"Who told you about Skywalker?" Motti finally inquired, folding his hands and leaning forward a bit.

"A. . .reliable source."

"Ah. Well. If you know what's good for you, you won't throw such a name around so flippantly. Skywalker is not a welcome topic here. Make note of that, Princess."

"But _why_?" Leia persisted. "What was so bad about him?"

Luke was growing progressively more uneasy as the conversation continued. He didn't understand what his sister was doing. Clearly this Imperial had no information to offer, so why was Leia still asking questions? It just didn't make sense.

"Theoretically, suppose I _did_ know something about Skywalker," Motti said. Leia perked up significantly.

Motti continued, "Again, _theoretically._ If I did have some knowledge in that particular area, what would someone like you want with it?"

Leia had to think about that. The answer was obvious, but she couldn't just tell him, "Because Anakin Skywalker is my biological father." As if _that_ would blow over well.

But if the direct truth wasn't an option, the only way to go was lying. Now, Leia had become quite skilled at the unethical habit of spinning decent tales (not a talent she was genuinely proud of), but this situation was different. Was there even a plausible excuse for wanting information about Vader's least favorite person?

Or. . .maybe Leia wouldn't have to lie at all. Perhaps the truth _was_ the best alternative. If Leia told the exact, honest truth, it would be a story so bizarre that Motti might not even believe it.

But then something terrible happened. Leia's Theory popped back into her head, filling her mind with things she didn't want to think about.

What if Leia told the truth and Motti _did_ believe her? What if he knew everything about Anakin, and what if Anakin and Vader turned out to be the same-

"Princess? Is everything alright?" Motti asked lazily. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Leia shook her head to clear it.

Never mind. Never mind that whole thing. She _definitely_ didn't want to tell Motti her motives.

Maybe Leia herself wasn't ready for the truth. Or maybe she was afraid of what Motti would think. Either way, something led Leia to say, "You know what? Uh. . .forget it. You obviously don't know anything about Anakin Skywalker. . .so. . ."

Somewhere behind her, Luke made a surprised noise in his throat. Leia was giving up? Just like that? Weird.

"Well, thanks for all your help and stuff. I'll see you around, I guess," Leia said, voice sounding unusually distant.

Motti, understanding that this was his cue to leave, stood immediately to his feet, heaving a grateful sigh.

"Happy to help," he said sarcastically. "Should you need something else, please don't hesitate to call. My job kind of depends on it."

As Motti paced to the door, Leia turned away, fully intending to let the Imperial leave without delay. However, at the last possible second, Leia's mouth spoke without her consent.

"Wait!" she called, facing the back wall. Without even turning around, Leia knew that Motti had stopped in his tracks, one foot already out the door.

A sigh. "Yes. . . ?"

Incoherent sentences and words collided in Leia's brain as she fumbled for something to say. Everything in her screamed, "DON'T TELL HIM," but some illogical, hidden part of Leia's subconscious was pushing her to say it.

 _Don't tell him, don't tell him, don't tell him._

"Um. . ."

 _Don't tell him, don't tell him. . ._

"Anakin is. . .i-is. . ."

 _DON'T TELL HIM, GOSH DARN IT!_

"Anakin is my father."

As soon as the words left her lips, an odd silence filled the room. A silence so quiet that it almost seemed _loud._

"Nice," Luke deadpanned. It took Leia a couple seconds to realize that he'd said it out loud.

Horrified and angry with herself, Leia turned around to face the damage she'd undoubtedly caused. She found Motti, mouth open in some sort of expression of disbelief and annoyance, staring right back at her.

"Pardon?" Motti stammered, gazing at the Princess with inexplicable accusation, as if she'd just insulted him.

Too afraid to repeat her outburst, Leia only swallowed. Apparently, Motti had heard her after all, because he stepped back into the room.

"Anakin? Anakin _Skywalker_?"

Leia hesitated, then nodded.

Luke was rapidly looking back and forth between Motti and his sister. The tension was escalating to an uncomfortable level.

And now, obviously, Leia was having second thoughts about Motti not knowing anything about Anakin.

"Is this some sort of joke?" the Imperial demanded, stomping closer to Leia.

"N-no! I-"

"Because here in the Empire, we do _not_ tolerate such arrogant false claims about Skywalker!"

"I-"

By now, Motti was inches away from Leia, staring down at her intimidatingly. Even though the Lieutenant General was not exactly tall, he still towered over the Princess, glaring at her as she leaned away.

"I assure you, Anakin Skywalker is _not_ your father, and you'd better be _extremely_ glad that he isn't!"

"So he's alive-?"

"No, Princess! Anakin Skywalker is _dead_. And when he died, someone much worse took his place. I understand that you've led a privileged life back on your home planet, but that does _not_ give you the right to make up a tale like that."

Leia wanted to say that it was true. That Anakin Skywalker really _was_ her real father. That Motti didn't "have the right" to talk to her like that.

There was so much she wanted to say, and so much she wanted to ask. Leia especially wanted to know who had taken Anakin's place.

Then, with a sinking feeling of dread and disappointment, Leia realized that she _already_ knew.

So, instead of standing up for herself and salvaging what little dignity she had left, Leia angrily looked away and muttered, "Yes, sir."

Luke's mouth fell open.

Convinced that he had won, Motti nodded once and dashed through the door, closing it behind him.

A full minute after the Imperial had made his exit, Leia was still grounded to that one spot, hands curled into tight fists.

Luke, having watched the whole ordeal and was _still_ observing Leia from a safe distance, decided it was time to step in.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked, stepping a little closer.

Leia eyed him, opened her mouth, and immediately closed it.

Much to her brother's surprise, Leia rocketed towards the bed, leapt on top of it, and buried her face in a black pillow.

Then she screamed. She let out a shrill, agonizing, frustrated scream. Luke winced, staying where he was.

Leia was still screaming into the pillow, fifteen seconds later. When she ran out of breath, she started again. And again.

After a while, Luke was getting concerned. But he was also kind of happy. Maybe it wasn't obvious to anyone but him, but Leia had been harboring every emotion in existence for way too long. If this meant that she would be back to normal, Luke was content to let it happen.

However, when the furious screaming subsided, it dissolved into something else. Leia was crying.

And she hated herself for it. Leia didn't cry very often, but when she did, it was usually painful to experience.

Leia despised crying. It made her look weak and childish. Made her seem vulnerable.

A most un-Princess-like thing to do.

 _What the heck is wrong with me?_ Leia though bitterly. Usually she was much better with reigning in her emotions, but now something was different.

It was safe to say that Leia was officially drained. Physically, mentally, emotionally, you name it. She had struck a rut in her plan, and things were looking grim.

If only Motti would've been more _cooperative!_ Even if he didn't believe her, he could've at _least_ played along to humor her. Why was Anakin Skywalker such a serious topic? Why would no one _talk_ about him?

A small voice in Leia's head told her that she already knew. She'd known for days now but had yet to officially acknowledge it. Unfortunately, the Princess _refused_ to acknowledge it. The idea was too horrible. Too terrifying. Too _wrong._

But if it was the truth, was it really so wrong?

 _Leia, stop,_ she told herself. She needed a confirmation to be sure. No jumping to conclusions.

Then again, did Leia even want to know? Perhaps her theory would be incorrect, and she could go about her life without the stress of what could've been. However, her theory might turn out to be _right._

What would she do then? Would she even believe it?

And what about Luke? Could Leia possibly crush her twin's heart and soul by revealing that awful potential truth? Luke would be absolutely _devastated._

The mattress shifted slightly, alerting Leia to the fact that her brother had sat down next to her.

By now, Leia had gotten ahold of herself (to a degree). For a few minutes, the twins sat in companionable silence, content to just exist in the presence of one another.

After a while, Luke hesitantly asked, "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Leia muttered, sitting up slowly and scrubbing away the last traces of any tears.

Luke cringed. "You don't _look_ fine."

With a glare capable of withering a plant, Leia said, "Then stop looking!"

Thoughts still primarily centered around Anakin Skywalker, the Princess crawled to the edge of the bed and plopped down next to Luke.

"Can we maybe pretend none of that happened?" Leia asked, eyes downcast.

Luke laughed quietly. "Sure. But for the record, I don't blame you."

He received an inquisitive look from Leia.

"I get that you don't like showing a weakness or whatever," Luke continued, "but honestly? It's not a bad thing. You're a human being, after all. Emotions are inevitable."

"Yeah, that's the part I hate."

"Figures."

Then, randomly, Leia bolted upright and turned to Luke.

"Where's my satchel?" she asked. Not bothering to wait for a reply, Leia spun around and began searching the room for the treasured object.

Minutes later, she found it under the bed.

"How come it was under there?" Luke wondered aloud, raising an eyebrow.

"I hid it under here," Leia replied, "because I didn't want someone to come in and see it. I remember now."

She pulled it out and flipped it open, taking inventory with a practiced eye.

"Good, everything's still here!"

Curious, Luke inquired, "Why do you need it. . . ?"

Rolling her eyes, as if it were the most obvious answer in the world, Leia said, "Uh, because we're leaving?"

Like always, her words took a while to actually register in Luke's brain. When he finally _did_ understand, he exploded with objections.

"WHAT? Are you _serious_? After everything we've been through and everything we've been told, you _still_ want to break the rules? Leia, _no_."

Unfortunately, Leia was not paying much attention to Luke's fervent ranting. She was thoroughly engrossed in something in her hand.

Leia was holding the "accepted" model of the Empire's secret weapon, turning it around in her palm. She'd nearly forgotten about it, but now it was giving her an idea.

"Luke, calm down," she sighed. "We have _two_ jobs now."

Instantly suspicious, Luke narrowed his eyes and asked, "Which are. . . ?"

"First, we need information about Anakin Skywalker."

"And second?"

By way of reply, Leia tossed him the metal sphere.

"Second, we figure out what _that_ is."

Luke was silent for an uncomfortable amount of time. He wanted to help Leia, he really did. There was just something weird about the way she was acting.

Was Leia always generally impulsive and reckless? Absolutely. But Luke was her twin, and he prided himself in his ability to figure out when Leia had something on her mind.

As much as he'd like to just read her mind and find out the truth right away, that would be a _huge_ invasion of privacy. In fact, he and Leia had previously discussed some "unspoken" rules of their newfound relationship. And rule number one was: NEVER READ EACH OTHER'S MINDS WITHOUT PERMISSION.

It seemed like a good, ethnically sound standard at the time, but now Luke was seriously questioning it.

Instead of outright asking Leia what she was thinking about, Luke went for the subtle approach.

"Are you _sure_ those are your only goals?" he asked in what he _hoped_ was a casual tone.

Leia frowned. "Nice try."

So much for the subtle approach.

Luke groaned. "Leia, c'mon. We _both_ know you have something else in mind. Just admit it."

Leia was already heading towards the door. "Nah."

"Leia."

She turned around, mildly surprised at the seriousness in Luke's voice.

He didn't look upset, though. Just. . .concerned. For what, Leia didn't know.

"What's wrong?" Luke asked.

Biting her lip, Leia considered her options. Her brother seemed genuinely worried about something.

Leia couldn't tell him. Of course, she had zero concrete proof of her theory, but that didn't change a thing. Luke would know that Leia wasn't kidding, and that would be enough to shatter his morale. Leia knew, because she was experiencing that exact feeling.

But Princess Leia also had no plans to lie to her brother. She'd just have to keep the secret for a little longer.

"You would'nt believe me if I told you," she said, offering a small smile.

"Try me."

Leia shook her head. "Just forget it, okay? Now's not the time."

Before Leia could open the door, Luke slid in front of her.

"When _will_ it be the time?"

His blue eyes held a sort of desperate need for the truth, pleading and begging Leia to tell him.

She couldn't.

"When I know for sure," Leia said gently but firmly.

Accepting that answer (for now), Luke sighed, defeated.

"Fine. If you won't tell me what you're thinking, can you at least tell me where we're going?"

Leia opened the door, pulling Luke out into the hallway.

"I'm not really sure," she admitted.

Luke rolled his eyes. "That sounds familiar."

Laughing, Leia nodded and adjusted her bag slung over her shoulder.

"Come on," she said. "We still have sixteen and a half days on this thing. Might as well get some answers out of it."

Lacking a decent plan (as usual), but full of new determination, the twins started down the hallway, laughing and talking as they went.

 **A/N: WOOOOO, you made it! This was actually a shorter chapter, compared to some of the previous ones. But at least it's here, amiright? :p**

 **So. As for the update schedule from now on...ERGH. I've actually sorta been sifting through all the chapters of this story, and HOLY COW - there are like, 57893875 PLOT HOLES AND TYPOS! WHHHAAAA...? So...I think I'll be going back through, starting at chapter 1, and fixing a ton of stuff.**

 **Since I'll be doing that (fixing formatting errors, typos, punctuation, plot holes, etc), the next chapter MIIIIIIGHT be up a little late too. But whatever you do, pleeeeaaaase don't unfollow this story just yet! It'll be finished at some point, I swear! And when it is, you won't wanna miss it XD**

 **So yeah. If the next one is a lil' late as well, don't hate me? :P**

 **If you've stuck around this long, here's some Internet cookies (::) (::) (::)**

 **Thanks again for everything! I'll see you around! :)**

 **-Lia**


	53. Chapter 53: Hakuna Matata

**A/N: OMG, HAAAIII! I haven't seen you all since October! I've missed youuuuu! :)**

 **So. Quick little life update: life is busy - busier than it's ever been, if I might add. And this chapter has been sitting here for a while, and once again, I somehow managed to forget about it for TWO MONTHS.**

 **Hopefully you guys are still out there XD**

 **So yep, here's chapter 53! There will be an important note at the end of this chapter, so stick around till then if you wanna :p**

 **Again, if you think you might have trouble remembering the way things are going in this story, you may wanna head back to chapter 51 or 52 to refresh your memory, haha :)**

 **For now, REVIEWS (LOTS OF 'EM, TOO. THANKS GUYS!)**

 **Guest 1: Thank ya! They may or not have a plan to leave, but you didn't hear that from me, heh. Yeah, those kids are always on the move. Hard to keep a Skywalker in one place :p**

 **Pheobe Buffay: Thank youuu! Leia is essentially the one who wants answers - Luke is just following along (he's curious too, though).  
You mean, *if* they find out Vader is their father XD Leia knows, but she doesn't *know*, if that makes any sense. She doesn't have any solid proof yet, anyway.  
The twins won't be meeting Ashoka in this story, but maybe in a sequel? I'll keep the idea in mind! Thanks for your review!**

 **Victoria: Thanks for the kind review, and the Marathon Read XD Omg, I'm so glad you like the story! It's always nice to get some feedback about the way Leia is portrayed in here, so thanks for that too! Sorry this update took so long...hopefully it doesn't disappoint XD**

 **Guest 2: Thank ya so much! Vader hasn't told them for a lot of reasons. They would probably get really mad, they'd hate him, they'd be mad at their adoptive guardians, etc etc...and he *really* doesn't need that kind of drama right now, heh. I mean, look at how Luke reacted in Empire Strikes Back! Not exactly thrilled :p  
Yep, many more adventures to come! :)**

 **Guest 3: Thank you! :)**

 **Andy T: I'm glad you think it's exciting! Leia, yeah...she's a spunky one, hehe. Vader won't have to come back and find them missing...because they may or may not go looking for him instead :p Thank you so much for the review!**

 **changingdestiny40: Yeah, Motti is a canon character, but we don't see very much of him in the movies. Remember when (in A New Hope) Vader said, "I find your lack of faith disturbing"? He was saying to Motti, I believe XD Motti isn't against the Empire, but he's not a big fan of the *Emperor*. Who is, really? :p  
The thing is, Vader himself just doesn't like talking about "Anakin". It reminds him too much of his past life, and anyone who brings it up tends to get punished (or at least, I assume). He's probably bumped off a few people for it, and I guess others just learned from the example. Plus, I'm sure most people on the Imperial fleet don't even know that Anakin and Vader are the same person. Vader's a secretive guy, heh.  
Leia definitely doesn't want to admit that her dad is...well...you know.  
Thanks for the review, as usual!**

 **Maride: Aw, thank you! Leia and Ashoka are totally spunky. The spunkiest XD  
Yeah, one of the reasons I made this story was because *I* wanted to see more of Child Leia, and I guess some other people did too, cuz here we are! XD thanks for your review!**

 **Guest 4: Yeah, thank you! They'll for sure interact some more with Vader, and maybe have a little adventure beforehand? We'll see XD**

 **Jaime: Thank youuu! I'm glad you like the twins XD They'll get some answers eventually, you have my word ;)**

 **Guest 5: Thank you so much! Yeah, she's cute, isn't she? XD**

 **khagler: Hahaha, you're right XD Leia's got parts of both her parents, but we've been seeing a liiiiitle more Anakin in her lately ;) Thanks for the review!**

 **OKAY! Maybe you skipped down here, maybe you read all that stuff. Either way, I'm very excited to present you: CHAPTER 53!**

 **WHHHHHEEEEEEEEEE!**

 **Luke's Log:**

 **Leia's Worst Idea Ever**  
 **Day 1**

 _So. I'm Luke Skywalker. My twin sister is Leia Organa, and she has officially lost her mind. How, you ask?_

 _It all started yesterday. Against my better judgement, I followed Leia out of our (VERY SAFE) room and into the unforgiving hallways of this beehive of Imperials. She said she wanted answers._

 _You see, Leia has this weird thing where she gets an idea and then never leaves it alone until she accomplishes the goal. Her current goal is to solve the mystery of a man called Anakin Skywalker. . .who also happens to be our biological father._

 _Leia is entirely set on finding out what happened to Anakin. Apparently, she's been told enough different stories about him to be really confused. But all the stories have this one thing in common: everyone says Anakin Skywalker is dead._

 _Personally, I don't have a preference on what story to believe. If he's dead, he's dead. . .and no amount of prying or investigating will change that. But who really knows? With the way things have been going lately, I'm not too sure of_ ** _anything_** _anymore._

 _Oh, right. I'm using Leia's datapad to write all this, mostly because I don't want to keep using her journal. She's also kinda in a mood. . .so I think I'm just scared to ask her permission. I know she's in a mood, because when I asked to see her datapad, she just sort of growled and threw it at me._

 _Not that I really blame her. It's been a rough day._

 _After we started down that hallway, it was probably about five minutes until we ran into someone. Literally. Four stormtroopers were marching around the corner, and we crashed right into them._

 _Thankfully, I guess Vader had let everyone know that we were guests and not objects for target practice, because the troop leader only said, "Watch where you're going!"_

 _But Leia couldn't leave it at that. No, she had to turn right around and say, "Hey, wait a second!"_

 _And let me tell you, when Leia says, "Hey, wait a second!", it does not usually mean she is happy. In fact, it usually tends to precede some sort of disaster. Every. Single. Time._

 _I haven't even heard her say it that many times. But I know her well enough to recognize impending DISASTER._

 _So, the troop leader turned around and said, "Yes?"_

 _Leia replied, "Do any of you know anything about Anakin Skywalker?"_

 _And then the whole hallway went silent. Seriously. Even the vents and everything. Total silence._

 _Or, at least, it sure felt like it._

 _After a_ ** _full minute_** _of very uncomfortable stillness, I was starting to consider dragging Leia down the hall and clonking her over the head with her own blaster. But before I could actually act on that, one of the stormtroopers said, "What?"_

 _The way he said it was kind of intense, but of course Leia just stood there, staring him down and stuff._

 _"Anakin Skywalker," she repeated. "Do you know anything about him?"_

 _The trooper leader stepped closer, peering at both of us (but really only Leia, because I was hiding behind her. . .). He said, "Look, I don't know who you kids are talking about, but you really shouldn't be wandering-"_

 _We never got to hear the end of his sentence, because he got a comm call from someone. The stormtroopers left the way they had come, the leader grumbling about some maintenance work._

 _Leia was extremely upset._

 _"What?!" she yelled. "Hang on!"_

 _She was about to tear down the hall after the troopers, but I had to get ahold of her arm and hold her back. As usual._

 _"No, Luke, they have to know_ ** _something_** _!" she all but screeched._

 _So then I had to explain that NO THEY DID NOT KNOW. The stormtrooper was completely oblivious to what Leia was talking about - I could tell. He didn't even try to reprimand us for "making up stories"._

 _My explanation didn't really help matters at all. It just made Leia even more determined to find someone who DID have answers for her._

 _Since we didn't know our way around the Star Destroyer that well, I suggested that we go back to our room and wait patiently for Vader to come back. But Leia, per the usual, had a much different, much more dangerous idea._

 _I strongly disagree with this idea, but there's really nothing I can do about it. Despite being unnecessarily complicated (not a first, when it comes to Leia's ideas), it_ ** _is_** _kind of a decent plan. Plus, as much as I hate to admit it, I'm interested in Anakin too. PLUS. . .well. Leia's kinda my twin, which means I stand by her, even if I don't totally agree with her. Which, I've learned to realize, is the story of my life now._

 _But now Leia is just moping around. I managed to persuade her to come back to our room yesterday, after a while. She went straight to the Holonet, but forbid me from looking at what she was researching. She's very set on setting this plan of hers into motion._

 _Leia has been draped across the bed for almost 2 hours, and it's still really early in the morning. She pretty much only moved to throw her datapad at me. Whenever I talk to her, she responds in sighs and growls._

 _I guess she's just stressed out about stuff. Our current situation is a lot to deal with, yeah. But I feel like there's something else she's not telling me. Scratch that - I KNOW she's not telling me something._

 _Yesterday, on our way out the bedroom door, she basically admitted to my face that she's keeping a secret. It's starting to freak me out._

 _To be honest, I could just read her mind and find out. But then she'd probably never trust me again, and I don't feel like running the risk._

 _Ugh. I'm probably not going to disclose Leia's "plan" in here, because there's a chance (a small chance, but still) that someone might read it and freak out as much as I did. It's probably illegal._

"Luke!" Leia called, making him jump straight off his chair. "Can you find me a wire clothes hanger?"

Luke cocked an eyebrow.

 _I think she's getting delusional. Leia just asked me for a "wire clothes hanger"._

 _I honestly hope I can figure out what's bothering her. Because when something bothers her, it also bothers me. And vice versa. Plus, I don't know how much longer I can deal with her-_

"Sometime today would be nice," Leia groaned, body still unmoving on the bed.

 _Never mind. It appears that I have to now scour the closet for a wire hanger, which, by the way, I don't even know will be appreciated or actually needed. Sheesh. The things I do for my sister._

Turning off the datapad and setting it on the desk, Luke spun around to face Leia.

"A _wire hanger_?"

"Mmhmm."

"Uh, ok, why?"

No reply.

With a defeated sigh, Luke reluctantly pulled himself to his feet and headed to the closet. He opened the door, stepped in, and realized all the hangers he could see were velvet.

"Great," Luke said, throwing his hands in the air.

He poked his head out of the doorway and started to ask, "Does it _have_ to be-"

"YES!"

Hastily, Luke withdrew into the closet once more.

In the meantime, a very distraught Leia forced herself to sit up. She did, after all, have a plan to set up.

Leia slid off the bed and hopped directly into the desk chair. The computer screen lit up with the click of a button, prompting the Princess to find the browser and type in, "How to pilot a shuttle".

 **~•~**

 **Leia's Search History**

 **\- How to pilot a shuttle**  
 **\- How to fly a TIE Fighter**  
 **\- Imperial shuttle pilot manual**  
 **\- Anakin Skywalker (search denied)**  
 **\- Uses for wire clothes hangers**

 **~•~**

Later that day, while Leia was busy sorting through the contents of her satchel, Luke dramatically burst out of the closet, holding a single wire hanger.

"I _found_ it!" he declared, ceremoniously laying it on the floor in front of Leia.

Absentmindedly, Leia nodded her thanks and proceeded to bend the hanger into a mangled shape.

Luke, horrified, tried to yank it out of her hands.

"What are you _doing_?!" Luke yelled. "I went through all that trouble, just so you could-"

"Hang on," Leia replied calmly, holding the object out of Luke's reach. "Watch this."

Leia worked quickly, bending the hanger completely out of shape, until it became a single, long, metal wire.  
She held it up proudly.

"Ta-da! A custom-made tool!" she said.

Luke, still entirely confused by this logic, grabbed the wire and asked, "And what exactly can we do with a _wire_?"

"You'd be surprised," was all Leia said.

She let Luke keep the hanger and turned her attention back to her satchel.

Surprisingly, she had packed a lot more into it than she remembered. Some of it was useful, and some of it was relatively pointless. . .but she decided to keep everything anyway.

As Leia sorted all her belongings into separate piles, her eyes landed on the metal prototype sphere that she'd found in the cargo hold.

A familiar feeling of uneasiness settled in her stomach, like it always did when she reminded herself of what that prototype symbolized. It spelled doom and destruction, probably having the capabilities to obliviate whole planets.

With this in mind, Leia got an idea. She located the Imperial datapad that she took from the cargo hold and turned it on.

Quickly, Leia selected **Display 3D Model** and scrolled to the schematics.

"Hey, Luke?" Leia asked, staring at the mess of squiggles and numbers.

Luke looked up from reshaping the hanger. "What?"

"C'mere. Do you know what any of this stuff actually means?"

Defeatedly tossing the bent wire aside, Luke crawled over to his sister and leaned over the datapad.

After a few moments of his blue eyes skimming the screen, Luke looked at Leia and said, "I already told you - it's gonna be huge."

"I know that," Leia replied with an elaborate eye roll. "But besides the size, what else can you figure out?"

"What am I, some sort of Ultimate Weapon Specialist?" Luke asked. "There's not much that-"

Interjecting, Leia pointed to something in the schematics. "What about this? Do you know anything about that?"

Luke frowned, examining the words and numbers. It was explaining something about the supposed power source of the weapon, but it was too sophisticated for him to completely understand.

"Uh. . ." Luke said, still trying to make sense of it all.

"What?"

"I don't get it. It's powered by a massive laser of some sort, but I don't understand _how._ "

Leia agreed. "What kind of giant power source would produce a _laser_?"

Exasperated, Luke ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. "I have no clue. But whatever it is. . .we better figure it out."

 **~•~**

Later that night, as the twins were both curled up under their surprisingly comfortable blanket, Leia suddenly awoke with a start.

She realized with remorse that she had been dreaming that strange dream again. The one with her and Luke in a desert, when a tall, looming shadow towered over them, and the sound of heavy breathing filled the air.

Leia shook her head, pressing her fingers to her temples.

 _It's just a dream, it's just a dream, it's just a dream. . ._

No matter how hard she tried, Leia could never figure out exactly what was happening in that dream, much less if it held any significance.

The ominous breathing reminded her of Darth Vader, but some strange part of her brain refused to believe it was actually him. Because, in the dream, it seemed like he was there as an _enemy._  
And for whatever reason, Leia didn't want to picture Vader as the "bad guy".

 _Probably because he's your-_

Leia gave her head another violent shake, angry that she almost completed that thought, and angry that she _didn't_ complete that thought.

Her mind was a complicated place to be.

 _Only sixteen more days now. Sixteen days until we have to make a choice._

The choice was, of course, what would happen next. When the sixteen days were up, the twins would be faced with an impossible decision. And, Leia thought, it may end up being more than one.

Was she going to stay on Tatooine? Was Luke going to come with her to Alderaan? No. Their respective guardians would have all _sorts_ of fits about that. They had, after all, orchestrated everything so annoyingly well.

But the thought of leaving Luke behind and going back to normal life on Alderaan. . . ? It just wasn't right. Not after everything they'd discovered and all that they'd been through together. It just wasn't _fair_.

 _Nothing is fair anymore_ , Leia thought bitterly. _Everything I ever knew is a lie, and now I'm supposed to go home and act like none of it even matters?_

Leia rolled over, curling into a tighter ball. Beside her, she could feel the presence of her brother.

That was an interesting sensation — being able to _feel_ that someone was close by. Leia was still getting used to the Force and her abilities. If she tried, Leia could always feel people when they were near. She could stretch out her mind, like a hand, searching for those tiny pinpricks of light and energy.

For some people, Leia didn't even have to try. She could feel Vader, for example, across an expanse of a space vacuum. Her brother's presence was default, too. When Luke was near, Leia just _knew._

Out of curiosity, Leia closed her eyes and felt for Luke's thoughts. His mind, usually vibrant and active, was silent and dim.

 _Must be nice to sleep peacefully_ , Leia speculated. It had been many nights since she'd been able to sleep normally. There was simply too much to think about.

Finally, realizing sleep was a lost cause this time, Leia gave a quiet groan and rolled out of bed. She groped around in the dark for a while, searching for the Imperial datapad. As to not wake Luke, she forced herself to leave the lights off.

Her fingers brushed the object, and she picked it up, dragging her sort-of-tired body to the desk chair.

Leia plopped down, cringing slightly when the chair squeaked. Hesitantly, she flicked the datapad on and once again navigated her way to the technical blueprints of the giant weapon.

Such a massive, powerful weapon, too. It amazed her that something so huge could've been created, but then again, it was the Empire they were dealing with.

 _I can't believe I have the plans to this thing,_ Leia thought, mildly amused.

Then, finally, after all that time, it sank in.

 _I can't believe I have the. . ._ ** _plans_** _to this thing. . ._

 _I HAVE THE PLANS TO THIS THING!_

Something inside Leia misfired, and she was hit with an explosive wave of anxiety. Her shaking hands lost their grip on the datapad, and it clattered to the floor. But Leia didn't even notice the noise.

The exclusive, important, difference-between-life-and-death IMPERIAL WEAPON SCHEMATICS were now in Leia's possession and _had been_ for several days.

If anyone found out that Leia had taken the plans and was carrying them around on her person. . .what would happen?

 _It's fine, it's fiiiine. There weren't any witnesses. . ._

Then, with another jolt, Leia realized that there definitely _was_ at least one witness.

Leia's mind flashed back to their experience in the mysterious cargo hold, and she remembered the Imperial officer that had been in there. . .and the twins had made that dash to the elevator. . .

If that officer pieced things together and told anyone, Leia was in for it.

Hastily, Leia scrambled to grab the datapad again. She needed to disable any location or tracking settings that might be on, or someone would eventually trace the signal to her.

The Princess fumbled with the device, fingers feeling stiff and shaky.

 _Location settings, location settings. . ._

She found it.

Wasting absolutely zero time, Leia searched the minimal display of settings and eventually located and disabled the location signal, which was in fact turned on.

Once more, Leia dropped the datapad, this time because of relief. She leaned back on her hands, letting out a tense breath.

There. No one would notice. It wasn't like someone was constantly watching that specific datapad, right? And the officer wouldn't remember her, and no one would go looking for the datapad.

. . .Right?

With a groan that conveyed overwhelming stress, Leia let her head sink into her hands.

This was a mess. Too much stress, too much to do. Too much to think about.

A thought occurred to Leia, then. She almost ignored it, because during a time like this, it seemed a little odd. In fact, it would be weird in almost every context.

Leia lifted her head, only to dejectedly prop it in one of her hands. She pursed her lips, considering.

"Oh, what the heck," she muttered to herself, pushing herself to her feet and glancing around the room.

She thought the closet might work, but it was dark, and she didn't feel like sitting in an ominously dark and creepy room in the middle of the night.

After thinking about it a second too long, Leia only rolled her eyes and headed towards the closet door. The floor wasn't wooden, so she didn't have to worry about it creaking, but she also didn't want to wake up Luke. It was bad enough that she'd unintentionally dragged him into her extensive drama — she didn't need to keep him awake at night, too.

The door opened without a sound, which Leia was grateful for. She slipped into the closet, slowly and carefully closing the door behind her.

The Princess left the lights off — the light would ruin the whole point — and stumbled around for a moment, running her hands along the wall to obtain some sense of direction. When she felt a sufficient distance between herself and the door, Leia sat down cross-legged where she was.

 _How do you do this again?_

 _Right, first I have to close my eyes._

Leia got herself settled and closed her eyes. She didn't really know what to do with her hands, so she just awkwardly rested them on her knees, hoping it didn't matter.

 _Now relax. Don't think about anything. . .just calm down._

 _Breathe in. . .and out._

Leia had very limited experience with the Jedi practice of meditation. She hadn't ever really tried the real thing, besides some random attempts at levitating other objects. This was different. Instead of focusing on lifting something with her mind, she needed to keep her mind entirely empty.

For Leia, such as task was very nearly impossible.

 _Just breathe. Stop thinking. Stop thinking. Stop thinking. . ._

Leia remembered a very important part of meditation — connecting with the Force. She tended to forget things like that, because the Force was still somewhat of a hazy topic for her. Eventually she'd come to terms with her abilities, but it might be a while.

The Princess let out a breath, searching the expanse of her mind for the point of energy that would be the Force. Her mental-hand stretched out, waiting and watching.

When Leia was beginning to slowly drift off into a disheartened sleep, a half hour later, her mind finally decided to sink into the smooth abyss of meditation.

It was _quite_ the sensation.

There were swirling colors that mixed and pulsed, yet it was as black as night. At first, Leia felt a rush, pulling her deep down into something alive and moving, but then she felt suddenly calm.

It was weird, because she _knew_ what she was doing, but she was also somehow oblivious to anything that could be happening around her.

Her mind felt empty and yet packed full of dozens of different thoughts. She felt nothing, yet she was being hit with every feeling imaginable.

A fountain of knowledge seemed to burst forth in the center of Leia's subconscious, bubbling with wisdom and truth and peace, drowning away every single care or worry, because Leia was here and of course had _always_ been here—

 _Wow._

There was a strangely satisfying connection that Leia felt to everything in that moment. A tether held her firmly there in her mind, but she could _feel_ and _see_ everything around her. She felt Luke's slow, even breathing as he slept, separated from her by the closet wall. She felt the smooth, cool surface of the floor. She felt the presences of everyone on the entire ship; it was almost enough to drive her crazy, but somehow her mind was entirely at peace with it all.

Leia wasn't even sure how she'd managed to get her mind into that state. But, she supposed, it didn't matter, because things finally seemed alright again. It was as if nothing was wrong in the universe, and how could it be, because the overwhelming sense of completion and happiness was enough.

Like. . .it was like, in that moment, she really _was_ one with the Force. She could almost _feel_ it around her, penetrating her being and yet making her whole. It was a terrifying feeling, but she loved it.

And that's when she heard it.

 _Well done, young one. Well done._

 ** _~•~_**

The next morning, Luke awoke slowly, yawning and rolling over onto his stomach. He groggily wondered what time it was and if he should just lie there and relax forever.

 _Eh. . .nah. Better get up and wake up Leia._

But when he propped himself up on one elbow to naggingly poke his sister, he found an empty space next to him. At first, he was impressed. Leia was a girl who appreciated any opportunity to sleep in, so this was new.

Figuring he'd find Leia diligently typing at the computer console, Luke threw back the blanket and leisurely slid out of bed. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and shuffled around the room.

Leia wasn't anywhere to be seen.

Then, Luke was confused. His blue eyes nervously flitted around the area, still not finding a curly-haired girl sitting or standing anywhere nearby.

Was it possible that she went back out into the ship? Leia _was_ desperate for information. . .but Luke doubted she'd just take off without telling him. So, what options did that leave?

In a brief moment of sudden panic, Luke tried to feel Leia's "Force-signature". He even transmitted, _Leia?_

There was no reply, and Luke's blood ran cold.

He wasn't terrified because Leia didn't respond — she had ignored his attempts at communicating several times. He was terrified because A.) he couldn't locate her signature at all, and B.) when he called her name, it echoed in his mind as if it was an empty, forsaken canyon.

That could mean one of two things: either Leia was blocking her signature, or she was dead.

Luke _seriously_ hoped it was the former.

In a last desperate attempt to find Leia, Luke sprinted to the closet door and yanked it open,

"Leia?" he called, rushing in.

He ducked under shelves, looked through all the layers of hanging clothing. . .still no Leia.

Luke was about to give up and collapse into major Panic Mode. He really was. But just before he turned around, he spotted something in the farthest corner.

It was suspiciously Leia-shaped.

Letting out a heavy sigh of relief, Luke jogged towards her, saying, "Gosh, Leia! Next time, _tell_ me before you shut yourself out like that."

As he neared his sister, Luke could clearly see that Leia had her eyes closed. He paused, squinted, and came closer.

Leia sat in a rigid, straight-backed, cross-legged position, unmoving hands resting on her knees. Her eyes were closed. It was like she was a statue.

"Um. . .Leia? Everything okay?" Luke asked cautiously, inching closer. How was she staying so eerily _still_?

With a jolt of fear, Luke realized something else: she wasn't even _breathing._

He tackled her, then, grabbing her by the shoulders and sending them both to the floor.

"LEIA LEIA LEIA!" he yelled, shaking her with more force than was probably necessary.

 **~•~**

Suddenly, as though she had slammed into a brick wall, Leia's mind was quickly pulled from the blissful expanse of nothing and roughly deposited back into her shell shocked body.

Involuntarily, Leia's eyes snapped open and she became painfully aware of another person furiously shaking her by the shoulders. So, her body reacted in the natural, expected way — she screamed.

And because Luke was actually _not_ expecting his seemingly unconscious twin to suddenly let out a piercing shriek, he stumbled backwards with a scream of his own.

This lasted for far too long, until Leia finally backed against the wall, shooting Luke her angriest glare.

"Luke, WHAT do you think you're _doing_?" she said. But before she was done with the sentence, Luke started talking over her.

"Leia, what in the _worlds_?! I thought you were _dead_! Why weren't you—"

"I wasn't _dead_ , I was _meditating_! And you had no right to—"

"Do you even realize—"

"I just don't see how—"

"Well maybe next time—"

"SHUT UP!" Leia yelled. It managed to echo throughout the closet, making Luke wince. Hopefully nobody had heard.

Silently acknowledging the awkward quietness that settled down on them rather quickly, Leia cleared her throat, nervously running a hand over her right shoulder.

"So. . .uh. . ."

Luke absently scratched the back of his neck, not-so-subtly keeping his eyes fixed on the floor.

Finally, he asked, "What were you _doing_?" It was gentler this time — more curious and less demanding.

Leia hesitated, then shrugged. Apparently she thought of a better answer, because she suddenly shook her head, sighed and sank right back down onto the floor.

Her brown eyes took on a wistful look, then. Like she was looking _through_ Luke rather than _at_ him. He thought this behavior was very concerning.

So, Luke plunked down next to his sister, trying to remain as patient as possible. Obviously he was wondering what Leia was doing when he found her, why she was doing it in the closet, and why she hadn't been _breathing._

But he also respected her privacy, and Luke decided he wouldn't press her for answers — at least, not yet.

If Leia wanted to tell him, she would.

Knowing that didn't make the patience any easier, though.

Thankfully, Luke didn't have to wait very long at all.

With a lopsided, almost _sad_ , smile, Leia rested her head against the wall behind her, letting out a long breath.

She turned slightly to Luke, searching his expression for something that Luke clearly didn't understand.

Her voice barely above a whisper, Leia said, "I think I know what we have to do."

 **A/N: AAAAAAND we're back.**

 **What'd you think? Leia has officially learned how to meditate, and she's learned some other stuff too, but that's for another chapter XD**

 **Any guesses on what Leia's apparently crazy plan is?**

 **Also, has anyone Googled uses for wire clothes hangers? You'd be surprised what people can come up with, haha.**

 **ALSO-also, did you know that Jedi can actually stop their heartbeat when they're in deep meditation? Like, they can enter a state where they're not breathing? HOW COOL IS THAT?**

 **SO. I HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT. Some of you may have been expecting this, some of you probably weren't. But here it is:**

 **I have officially decided to *extend* this story slightly, because I have stumbled across a plot that needs to stretch a little further than it has already. More things need to be wrapped up than I thought, so it looks like I'll be taking on the task of writing some more chapters to add on. So yep. Just when you thought this story was ending...**

 **Whoops :p**

 **But it won't get to 100 chapters, that's for sure haha XD just a couple more, to make sure everything is explained and comes to some sort of closure, heh. Hopefully you'll all stick with this story til the end...I know it's been an interesting ride XD**

 **Thanks in advance for the understanding! You guys are awesome.**

 **Until next time!**

 **\- Lia xoxo**


	54. Chapter 54: Rage Quit

**A/N: Hiyah, fellas! It's been a while! I hope some of you are still out there...in my defense, it's been a busy month. Midterms were taking up the majority of my time (the joys of high school), so hopefully things will go back to normal here real quick.**

 **changingdestiny40: Thank you! :) Yes, Leia has technically meditated before, but not exactly in the same way. The last couple times, it was to focus on lifting an object, or something along those lines. This was the real deal :p It was actually Obi-Wan that spoke to her through the Force! :) Yeah, she still has the "technical readout" with her, in her bag. Haha, ah yes, the wire hanger. It'll come in handy, I promise, haha. As for The Last Jedi, I actually really enjoyed it! In some aspects, it didn't feel as much like a Star Wars movie, but overall it was very good. Plenty of unexpected turns, but very good XD**

 **Okay, let's get this show on the road! As usual, if you think you may have trouble remembering where we are in the plot, feel free to go back and skim the previous chapter, if you want :)**

 **WHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEEE!**

 **Luke's Log**

 **Day 2**  
 **Still Leia's Worst Idea Ever**

 _Well, not much has improved, to be honest. Leia insists we go through with this insane plan, and I told her "NO WAY" (but way gentler, because she seems a liiiiiitle unstable right now)._

 _Of course, Leia couldn't take no for an answer, because she_ ** _never_** _does. But did I expect her to freak out and rant at me for ten minutes? NO!_

 _So I went to the only place I could get any peace of mind — the hallway._

 _Don't get me wrong, Leia and I aren't in any sort of fight or anything. But her plan is totally out of the question. We've gone against enough orders already. Better not make things worse._

 _Again, I don't think I should write about what her plan actually is. I don't trust any of the people on this ship, so what if someone finds this datapad and reads about what we were doing? Yikes._

 _Anyway, to quickly recap, I woke up this morning and couldn't find Leia. You can imagine how scared I was, what with the Emperor being around and all._

 _I found her in the closet, in some dark corner, just sitting there. With her eyes closed. Not breathing._

 _Long story short, I snapped her out of it, she screamed at me, I screamed at her, we calmed down, and Leia explained her horrible plan. Basically business as usual._

 _So I tried to talk her out of it, but she didn't listen to me and wants to do it anyway. Again — business as usual!_

 _And then Leia tried to meditate again or whatever, but she couldn't "find the right peace", or something like that. Or maybe she said "find the right_ ** _piece_** _"? I don't really know what she meant, but I guess she was meditating all night, and somewhere in there, she managed to stop her own heartbeat and not die. . . ?_

 _What is my life?_

 _The whole thing was a little out of my comfort zone, so I left the closet, grabbed Leia's datapad, and came out here. In the hallway. Of an Imperial Star Destroyer. So far, three stormtroopers and one Admiral have walked by here. They seemed kind of confused to see me sitting against the door by myself, but none of them said anything to me._

 _The Admiral did a double-take, though._

 _Vader must've let everyone know that Leia and I shouldn't be messed with. It's kind of cool, actually. It's like everyone is afraid to do something wrong around us._

 _The inside of a Star Destroyer is actually really impressive. There are hallways everywhere. Like, if I just started walking to the right and took a few turns, I'd probably be lost in five minutes. The design of all the rooms is pretty simple, and there aren't many decorations. In fact, I don't think there are ANY decorations — at least, not that I've seen so far. Our room has a rug, I guess. But that's it._

 _I really wish Leia would pull it together. We just can't go through with her plan. I don't know_ ** _what_** _happened during her "meditation" last night, but it definitely hasn't done much to invoke good reasoning in her._

 _I might as well head back inside the room now. Another stormtrooper just walked past, but I don't think he saw me. He didn't even look at me._

 _That's all for now. As Leia's crazy plan progresses, I'll update in here. And maybe someday, if Leia ever reads this, she'll realize just how insane she was being. You know, if we're still alive and everything._

 _\- Luke_

The blond boy saved his entry and shut down the datapad. Leia was probably still in there, trying to meditate.

Luke had no problem with meditation. After all, it was a legitimate Jedi practice, and Ben Kenobi had mentioned it. . .probably. Luke honestly didn't remember.

But either way, he had looked it up on the Holonet. He'd had to fight tooth and nail to find a decent article about meditation, it being a "Jedi" practice and therefore all but banished from existence.

The one he finally found wasn't especially helpful, but it gave him a better idea of just what his sister had been doing in that closet. Apparently, she could've been having visions, seeing the future, remembering the past, growing in the Force, searching for answers to a problem, or simply existing in a void of pure peace.

Luke couldn't decide which option sounded the least stressful. Even the "pure peace" part seemed a little. . .extreme. Considering one would have to exist in a void.

Reluctantly, Luke hauled himself to his feet and palmed the door open. To his surprise, Leia was not still in the closet. Instead, she was perched on the desk chair, fervently typing something into the computer console. Every few seconds, she switched to furiously scribbling something onto a piece of paper.

Carefully, as to not cause any problems, Luke slipped into the room, closing the door behind him. Leia either didn't notice or was just ignoring him.

Luke crept up behind his sister, trying to steal a glance at what she was writing. He caught a hurried glimpse of something like, "— _to predict the future_ —", but Leia chose that moment to spin around.

Her sudden movement caused Luke to step back.

"Yes?" Leia asked, sounding simultaneously irritated and amused.

"Uh. . .what're you doing?"

"Looking up some. . .stuff."

Luke almost asked what "stuff" she was digging around for, but in that instance, someone knocked loudly on the door.

The sound startled Luke, but Leia wasn't phased. She only said, "Oh," and hopped off the chair, walking to the door. When she opened it, there stood Lieutenant General Motti — or whatever they were supposed to call him.

He didn't look happy.

"What're _you_ doing here?" Luke asked, coming up beside his sister.

Leia turned to him and rolled her eyes. "I called him over while you were sitting out there sulking."

"Ah, yes," Motti jumped in. "And I am still awaiting an explanation. You clearly don't need 'company' as you said you did."

Leia grinned sheepishly.

"Well then?" Motti continued, impatient. "What is it?"

The Princess ushered him in and sealed the door. She brushed her hands on her tunic (which, Luke noted, didn't need to be brushed off) and cleared her throat. Luke could almost _see_ the look in her eyes — Leia was about to switch to Annoyingly Diplomatic Mode.

"I just realized that I have a few questions that you might be able to answer," she said, attempting a causal tone.

Motti frowned. "I see."

"So. . .first question. Where exactly did Vader go?"

Luke blinked, confused. She knew full well where Vader had gone. He told them he was going to Coruscant to supervise some sort of Empire Day preparation. Why was Leia asking about this, of all things?

"Lord Vader has gone to oversee the preparations for Empire Day, on Coruscant. It seems odd that he didn't inform you ahead of time."

Leia offered an absentminded nod, jotting something down onto that same piece of paper.

"Uh-huh. And what exactly is this _Empire Day_?"

Again, Luke squinted at Leia with absolute confusion. She already knew the answer to that question, too.

The Lieutenant General raised a dark eyebrow. "I find it hard to believe that a dignified individual such as yourself would have been so poorly educated as a child. Your parents never told you about Empire Day?"

"Well—"

"What planet are you from again, Princess? Was it. . .Alderaan?"

"Um, yes—"

"Ah, wonderful. You see, Alderaan just so happens to be an Imperial planet. Alderaan annually _celebrates_ Empire Day. Does it not?"

"Oh, is _that_ what the big celebration is for? With the parade?"

Luke had to admit, his sister was kind of convincing.

Motti, however, needed a little more than that.

He asked, "Surely your parents taught you about Empire Day? The day that the Emperor eliminated the Republic and established the Galactic Empire?"

Leia made another note on her ever-growing list of strange things. Luke shot her a look, which she didn't see.

" _Ohhhh_ , Empire Day! _Now_ I remember. You know, it's funny. I was actually _born_ on Empire Day."

Motti's face was not exactly shocked, but it wasn't entirely passive either. He quickly recovered, saying, "How wonderful for you." He didn't sound very excited about it.

Leia nodded, keeping up the act.

"Yeah. Oh! That kind of reminds me, do you know when Darth Vader started working with the Emperor? Like, the day he _officially_ became an Imperial?"

If Motti wasn't suspicious before, he was now.

"I'm afraid I don't know," he said. But Leia noticed the way his voice hitched at the end. So she pried even further, asking, "You don't know? Huh. If my memory serves me correctly, you work for the Empire, right?"

"I would say so."

"Okay, and you don't know when Lord _Darth Vader_ started working with the Emperor?"

"Lord Vader doesn't reveal such things to his employees."

"What about what happened to, oh, I don't know, _Anakin Skywalker_?"

Motti narrowed his eyes, leaning forward. "Princess, we seem to have had this conversation before. I refuse to engage in meaningless conversation about Skywalker, _especially_ when you have made a mindless claim about his lineage."

Leia wanted to argue that it hadn't been a mindless claim. She really _was_ the daughter of Anakin Skywalker.

But that didn't seem like the right thing to say.

Instead, she said, "Regardless, you have to know _something_ , right? I mean, everyone says he was the greatest Jedi who ever lived."

Motti cringed at the word "Jedi" and waved off Leia's comment.

"The Jedi are long gone, Princess. There is no merit to be gained from discussing them any further."

Because the conversation seemed to be plummeting rapidly downhill, Leia decided to play her final card: Innocent and Naïve Little Girl.

Leia pouted, crossing her arms.

"Well, maybe I'm just a girl who's curious about Anakin Skywalker. My parents used to tell me stories about him all the time when I was younger. They said he was called the Hero With No Fear. Is that true?"

When Motti didn't reply, Leia continued.

"Alright, listen. I'll make a deal with you. If you tell me everything you know about Anakin Skywalker, I won't bother you anymore. That means you won't have to come here again. _Ever_. Sound good?"

Motti looked as if he was considering it. The expression on his face was an interesting one, because Leia couldn't tell if he was _actually_ thinking about it, or just trying to stare her down.

"I mean, think about it," Leia said, casually gesturing with her hand. "All you have to do is tell me what you know. Then, I won't bother you anymore. Maybe I'll even let Vader know that you did a _great_ job looking after us, and he'll promote you! You never know."

Luke, somewhere behind Leia, sighed. When his sister found a loophole through which she could get what she wanted. . .she went for it.

They waited in silence until Motti let out a sigh of his own, glaring at Leia.

She smiled.

After another minute of thoughtful quietness, Motti finally gave in, saying, "What is it you want to know?"

When Leia cheered up significantly, Motti warned, "I cannot guarantee that I'll know the answer to everything you'll ask. My knowledge of Anakin Skywalker is limited. I only know the basic story."

The basic story was much better than no story at all, so Leia eagerly agreed. On the inside, though, she wondered if this was a bad idea. If Motti happened to confirm her theory. . .things could get bad. Especially since Luke was in the room, and Leia had yet to reveal her thoughts about Anakin to him.

Leia was never one to back off from a challenge, but was that a risk she was honestly willing to take?

Too late. Leia was already asking her first question.

"Was Anakin Skywalker _really_ the most powerful Jedi?"

Motti raised his eyes heavenward, searching for a response.

He replied, "I don't know. Supposedly. I am not familiar with all the Jedi, nor their levels of skill, but from what I've heard, Skywalker was the most powerful. But there could be someone who was even stronger."

"Where was he from?"

"From Tatooine, I believe."

Leia nodded, stealing a glance at Luke. Her brother didn't seem to be paying attention. He sat on the bed, head propped in his hand.

Leia continued, "Okay. . .what about the Clone Wars? How was Anakin involved?"

The Imperial's face took on a distant expression, like he was suddenly remembering a great deal of information all at once.

"The Clone Wars. Anakin Skywalker fought alongside a general by the name of Kenobi. During that time, there was supposedly much strife in the Jedi Council, and Anakin felt as though he wasn't being. . .treated as an equal."

Knowing this could very well be the worst possible thing to ask, Leia swallowed hard and inquired, "And. . .what happened to him?"

Something strange occurred then.

The dynamic of the whole conversation seemed to take a turn. Motti's serious gaze hardened as his eyes met Leia's. He held contact like that for an uncomfortable about of time, and with each passing second, Leia regretted the question more and more.

Luke felt something shift. He saw Leia's eyes take on a look of. . .was that fear?

Motti's eyes were still locked onto Leia's, progressively boring a hole into her soul — or so it seemed to her. She felt like she was slowly retreating further into herself. . .or maybe she was _actually_ backing up. Either way, Leia suddenly felt very small — and very upset that she'd ever asked the question.

And yet, by some miracle of twisted fate, her mouth spoke without the consent of her brain, and more words were out.

"D-do you know. . .if Anakin. . .i-if Anakin had any. . .kids?"

Motti's gaze managed to get ten times more intense, which Leia didn't even think was possible.

By now, absolutely anyone could tell that things were backfiring — hard. Even the air in the room felt thicker. Or maybe Leia was just holding her breath.

 _Hey, don't you think we should end it here?_

Leia recognized the voice as Luke's. She had all but forgotten that he was even there, but his message did nothing to help the situation. In fact, to Leia's utmost horror, she kept talking.

"B-because, if he did. . .do you — do you think. . .would they still be around? D-did he ever have a — a wife? And if he did. . .w-where is she? Would she be alive?"

The Princess was desperately trying to pull her brain together into some haphazard imitation of control. She knew she was rambling, she _knew_ she was digging a deeper hole. But something inside her wouldn't turn off.

"A-and if his wife was alive. . .where is she? Or, where _would_ she be. . .u-um, because it's all h-hypothetical. But i-if. . .I mean. . ."

The look Motti was giving Leia totally evaporated her train of thought. She trailed off slowly, leaning away from Motti, whose expression had shifted to something like disbelief, but still angry.

And just like that, Leia's brain functions misfired again and more regrettable words spilled out, but this time, she sounded significantly more confident — and that scared her.

"Who _is_ Anakin Skywalker?" she asked. "He was a Jedi. He had friends, he was a hero, and the galaxy loved him. I know for a fact that he didn't just disappear, and he isn't dead."

Leia kept going, raising her voice as she went.

"Anakin Skywalker was a living, breathing, real _legendary hero._ He existed. He's not a myth! The question is, why is the entire idea of him deleted from the _whole galaxy_?"

Luke very deliberately rushed to Leia's side, laying a hand on her shoulder.

"Leia, hang on," he started.

She shook him off, taking a step forward.

"I've been lied to my whole life. People say that Anakin just vanished when the Jedi Order fell, but I know that's not true — I _know_ it! And you _liars_ just think you can delete all the records of him. You think that _maybe_ , just _maybe_ , if you stop people from thinking about him, they'll just forget him altogether!"

Luke was getting anxious. "Leia!"

"But guess what! You can't just _erase_ the galaxy's greatest hero from existence. No matter how hard you _pretend_ he never existed, he did, okay? He _did._ And the more _lies_ you feed to the galaxy, the more people are gonna find out the _truth._ "

"Leia, _stop_!"

She didn't.

"Anakin Skywalker _just might_ be one of the most important people of all time for me, and _so help me_ , I _will_ find out what happened to him! You can't lie to me forever, and when—"

" _Leia_!" Luke yelled, grasping her arm with a surprisingly firm grip.

She whipped her head around, and the look in her eyes was not what Luke had expected.

He had expected her to look angry. He expected to see that wild, untamed fire that usually preceded some kind of intergalactic disaster.

He saw fire, yes. Leia's eyes _always_ had fire in them, even when they were filled with tears. But along with that fire, he saw some sort of _calm._

Leia seemed to be completely sure of herself. There was no doubt, no fury, and no anxiety. Only raw determination and a look of reassurance that was probably meant to make Luke leave her alone.

Luke was no idiot. He heard how this was going. He knew Leia was firing off words without thinking about it. But something told him that maybe he should let Leia handle this one.

 _Don't make me regret this_ , Luke said silently.

Leia's nod was barely perceptible as she turned back to look Motti in the eyes.

"If you know _anything_ , and I mean _anything_ , about what happened to Anakin Skywalker," she said to the Imperial, "tell me. _Now._ "

Motti's reply was. . .unexpexted, to say the least.

He furrowed his brow, a frightening expression on his face, and said, "Who _are_ you?"

Leia pretended she was indifferent about that.

"Princess Leia Organa," she said, as if he was insane.

"And where are you from?" the officer asked, his eyes darting from Leia to Luke and back again.

Leia frowned. "Alderaan."

Motti's eyes focused on Luke, then. "And where are _you_ from?"

Luke, rapidly becoming more and more confused, replied, "Uh, Tatooine."

Rubbing his forehead, Motti stood up. He let out a shaky breath and held eye contact with Leia, who was wondering what was happening.

He said, "You have no _idea_ how harsh the consequences will be if you repeat a _word_ of that to anyone! Do you even realize—"

Leia cut him off with, "I don't really care for what the 'consequences' will be. I want to know what happened to Anakin Skywalker, and I won't stop until I get an answer."

Motti dragged his gaze from Leia to Luke, his piercing eyes narrowing and widening, as if he couldn't decide what emotion he wanted to express.

Leia shifted her weight on her feet, preparing various responses to what Motti might say next. He seemed to be catching on to something. . .and Leia didn't feel good about it.

The Princess cleared her throat, deciding she would just wing it. After all, he was an Imperial. He couldn't be _that_ perceptive, right?

Motti closed the gap between himself and Leia, allowing barely an inch of space to separate them. Leia, being the stubborn girl that she was, didn't back down. She stood firm, face set in defiance.

Motti's expression was dark and his voice was low as he growled, "Watch yourself, _Princess_."

She fired back, " _Where_ is Anakin Skywalker?"

What occurred next was a moment so intense that Leia remembered it every day that followed. She would one day describe it as the day that everything changed for her. The day that pieces finally clicked into place, confirming the horrible truth that would change the way Leia viewed her life forever.

Motti eyes held both terror and authority as he stared down at Leia, whispering, "You already know."

The edges around Leia's vision turned dark and blurry. She involuntarily stumbled back a step, just barely managing to brace herself with her right leg.

Luke had absolutely no idea what to think. He stood a few feet away, watching the exchange between his sister and the Imperial. Something was happening over there, and Luke _wanted_ to intervene somehow. . .but he couldn't bring himself to move.

But Motti was getting awfully close to Leia, and she was not exactly looking as confident as she was before.

Luke frowned in confusion when Motti said, "You already know," to Leia.

Weren't they talking about Anakin Skywalker? Leia didn't already know where he was, because if she did, why was she asking about it?

Luke watched with increasing anxiousness as Leia got a weird look on her face. Her hands, hanging down at her sides, curled into tight fists.

The biggest change was in her eyes. Leia's usually fun-loving, kind, brown eyes were no longer fun-loving. . .or kind.

They had seemed to harden, becoming cold, piercing, and — if Luke was being honest — kind of scary.

He didn't have the slightest clue how to handle the situation. Leia was clearly on her last nerve, Motti was still talking (in a harsh tone, nonetheless), and anyone walking past the door in the hall would probably hear everything going on.

There really wasn't much the boy could do, other than mediate if things got too violent, or something. But so far, Motti hadn't actually _hurt_ Leia.

So Luke stood a safe distance away, biting his lip helplessly.

Leia wasn't having the same thoughts as her brother. She was actually devoting her entire mental capacity to keeping her emotions in check — and having an extremely hard time of it.

She tried to remind herself of what she had discovered. During meditation, she had truly found real peace, deep within herself. All she had to do was find that place again. . .

 _Don't lost control, don't lose control, don't lose control._

Those words became her mantra; she internally chanted them over and over again, until the rising anger began to slowly dissolve.

Then Motti said, "You know, Princess, at first I didn't know what to think of you. I _certainly_ didn't believe any of those ridiculous claims about Skywalker being your father. But now, I'm starting to understand."

There was not an ounce of sympathy in Motti's voice.

He continued, "You know where Anakin Skywalker is, and what happened to him, don't you?"

Leia didn't reply.

"I must admit that I pity you, Princess. Of all the people to be biologically related to — you _are_ unfortunate. I wonder if the same evil blood runs through your veins."

Now Leia mumbled angrily, "Shut up."

"You have his DNA. His genes. Even now, I see the striking resemblance to your father. Will you also murder multitudes of people? Betray your friends and family? Destroy—"

"I said, SHUT UP!" Leia yelled, heart furiously pounding against her ribcage. The suppressed anger boiled back up again, twisting her stomach into a painfully tight knot.

Luke apparently decided it was time to intervene.

"Hold on, what's going on over here?" he asked, hurriedly stepping over to Leia and eyeing Motti with suspicion. "Whose 'evil blood' are you talking about?"

Motti looked to Leia and hissed, "He doesn't know?"

Leia, who was too busy resisting the urge to spontaneously combust, offered no response.

"We were just discussing the matter of your _father_ ," Motti said, this time directing his glare at Luke.

The young boy fumbled for a moment, struggling to find the right words.

They hadn't told Motti that they were siblings. . .so how was Luke supposed to reply?

"Wha— we're not. . .I'm not. . ." Luke stuttered, trailing off with a shaky, nervous laugh.

"How long did you suppose you could fool me, boy? I know you're her brother. I can't explain it, but it all seems to fit now. The Skywalker blood is poisoned with evil and darkness."

"What? What are you talking about?" Luke asked, genuinely lost. Anakin Skywalker was a hero, not a villain.

"I'm talking about your father. Your sister. _You._ You've been blind to the truth all your life, shielded from reality. From who you really are."

Leia was shaking with her sheer hatred for Motti. He could insult her as much as he pleased, but under _no circumstances_ could he insult her brother.

" _Shut. Up._ " Leia growled, still halfheartedly shoving a cap on the rage she so desperately wanted to unleash.

Motti turned to Leia. He said, "Why don't you tell him the truth? Go on, say it. Tell your brother who his father _really_ is."

Through clenched teeth, Leia refused.

"Say it," Motti snarled. "Say it—!"

Before he could finish, Leia's final reserves of patience ran out. No longer able to bear Motti's accusations and condemning denouncement, Leia released her grip on the anger, and it exploded in her. It rampaged and swirled like a tornado inside her mind, unlike anything she'd ever felt before.

Words failed her, so Leia screamed with fury, unknowingly thrusting her arm out. In her wrath, any control she had over her abilities vanished, and Motti was suddenly thrown across the room, crashing loudly into the back wall.

 **A/N: ...**

 **o_0**

 **Well, that escalated quickly. I dunno if any of you were expecting Motti to wig out like that. So far, I've made his interactions with Leia relatively normal, and kinda comical. So this is new.**

 **So YES Motti knows they're siblings (not necessarily twins, but still). He also believes that Anakin is their father. And yeah, Leia does know that her dad is Darth Vader...she's just having a rough time admitting it. Luke, however, is still in the dark about that. Poor kid is just a tad oblivious :p**

 **Questions? Comments? Concerns? All of the above? Feel free to leave them in the review section if you wanna! Reviews are greatly appreciated ^_^**

 **I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Hopefully it was worth the wait!**

 **If there's still anyone out there, thanks for sticking around! It's not time to unfollow this story quite yet, so hang in there with me XD**

 **Until next time!**

 **-Lia :)**


	55. Chapter 55: Struggling

**A/N: Uh, um. . .heh. Wow. Hey guys. . .long time no see. . . ? ^_^**

 **How's everybody doing? Still out there? Happy Easter, to those of you that celebrate it! :)**

 **I know I start every chapter with an apology for a long absence, so I'll just say this: this story ain't over yet!**

 **Life is hectic, my dudes. But the show must go on! And I WILL finish this story, if it's the last thing I do! Onward!**

 **Some replies:**

 **changingdestiny40: Intense indeed. Ah, no, Motti agrees with the Empire...he just doesn't always like his boss that much. Don't worry - he's okay...probably :p As to Reylo...well. I dunno if I *ship* it. They do seem to have somethin' going on between them, but I don't know if it's romance. We'll have to wait and see what happens XD**

 **Nobodythestormcrow: Hey there! Yessshhhh, Leia is definitely her father's daughter. The coathanger will come in handy! They always do, they always do :p**

 **Alrighty, folks. Here we go! As always (yeesh), feel free to skim the last chapter if you want. We gonna keep chuggin steadily forward.**

Not two seconds after her uncalled-for outburst of anger, Leia lowered her arm in horrified realization. Her steely expression softened again, making her look more like herself and less like a furious monster.

Lips parted in shock, Leia's breaths came quickly and heavily. That feeling of uncontrolled rage was fading rapidly, only to be replaced by some sort of exhaustion.

Leia felt oddly hollow.

Luke was the first to jump back into action. He shook his head hard and ran over to Motti.

The Imperial was unconscious, but breathing. That was good, though. Right. . . ? Luke wasn't sure how to feel about anything, at the moment.

Leia slumped back against the wall, panting and wincing at the new ache in her chest. Something was wrong. Usually she was so much better at holding back — why had she lashed out like that?

And more importantly, what were they supposed to do now?

With a sinking feeling of dread, Leia mumbled, "We have to leave."

Luke looked over his shoulder at her and said, "What?"

"We have to leave," Leia repeated, louder.

"Wha— Leia, we can't just leave him like this!" Luke declared, turning back to Motti.

Leia had always prided herself in her practiced ability to think on her feet. Usually (key word, _usually_ ), she was able to come up with a half-decent plan that worked out well enough.

But for reasons of circumstance, Leia's mind had drawn a complete blank, and she couldn't think about anything other than the feeling in her stomach. The hollow, empty, cold feeling.

Motti's words rang and echoed in Leia's ears.

 _Evil._

 _Murder._

 _Betray._

 _Destroy._

Leia swallowed, replaying the moment over and over and over again.

Was she really meant to be evil? Meant to be like her. . .father?

"Leia!" she heard Luke call. Her focus snapped back into reality, then, but she didn't reply.

Luke continued, "We need to do _something_!"

And suddenly, Leia had an idea. Not a brilliant idea, and certainly not a rational one. In fact, her brain was still much too disoriented to make sense of _anything_. But it would have to do for now.

There was only one problem.

When Leia tried to speak, nothing came out. Her throat felt tight — probably another side effect of whatever she had just done to Motti. She tried again, and this time, her mouth produced one word.

"Closet," she rasped, pointing to the closed door near the bed.

"Huh?" Luke inquired, squinting at his sister in confusion.

 _Gee, get it together, Leia,_ she told herself.

To Luke, she said, "The closet."

He raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, but what do you mean by that?"

Giving up on the dependability of her own words, Leia pushed off from the wall and stumbled to Luke's side. Then, she wrapped her hands around one of Motti's arms and began pulling.

Luke watched for a second, eventually standing up and following Leia — she wasn't moving very fast, anyway.

"What are you doing?" Luke asked, entirely confused.

"We have to put. . .him. . .in the closet," Leia panted, dragging Motti's unconscious form slowly toward the designated door.

As if making sure he had heard correctly, Luke tilted his head and replied, "Um, _no_ , we don't."

Leia payed him no attention.

"Leia."

She ignored him.

"Leia, I'm serious, stop."

Leia was in front of the closet door now.

"Leia!"

She reeled on him. " _What_?"

"We're not putting an unconscious Imperial in the closet of our _bedroom_!"

" _Yes_ , we are!"

Luke stepped in front of the closet to block it.

"Leia, we _can't._ "

"Actually, we _have to_!"

"Why—?"

" _Because I used my kriffing powers on him,_ ** _that's_** _why!_ " Leia bellowed, pointing an emphasizing finger the Lieutenant General.

Finally understanding, Luke stepped aside without another word.

Using the Force to swing the door open, Leia pulled Motti inside. Luke heard her drop the Imperial's arm and walk back towards the door. He backed up a little ways, uncertain about his sister's intentions.

Leia didn't storm out, though. She came quietly, very carefully closing the closet door behind her. Her eyes met Luke's for a second, and she slid down against the door until she was sitting.

That hollow feeling wasn't necessarily getting worse, but Leia definitely felt it spreading throughout her body. First in her stomach, then her chest, then her head.

There was no pain, though. Only a deep emptiness that was somehow both discouraging and empowering. Leia's body was trying to decide which one it wanted to feel.

Leia wondered if, perhaps, it was a "mind over matter" thing. If she imagined that nothing felt wrong, maybe that hollowness would go away.

Despite that apparent discouragement, the feeling came with (aforementioned) empowerment. A strange, alluring strength that called to Leia from a place inside herself.

It had an almost _human_ voice, compelling the Princess with a rich, deep sound, wordlessly promising power and wisdom. All Leia had to do was submit to it. . .

No. Something about that wasn't right. Leia couldn't understand how she was able to be feeling so strong. . .and yet, also so helpless. It was as if her mind was growing weaker and weaker by the second, and eventually it would be powerless to resist.

What was she resisting? Leia didn't know. It was bad, though, because part of Leia _was_ fighting it. She felt the hollowness pushing against another part of her, physically showing itself when Leia inhaled sharply.

It couldn't be the Force, though. The Force wasn't so demanding or _heavy._ And Leia knew that she had never had to _submit_ to the Force in order to use it. She only had to _accept_ it.

Her hurricane of thoughts flashed to Ben Kenobi's humble abode, and his kind, reassuring expression. During her recent achievement of deep meditation, Leia had spoken with Ben. She couldn't explain it, but she'd seen him, as clearly as she could see Luke now.

But the setting had been different. There was no bedroom, and no closet. No noise. No light.

There was only Ben and herself, standing in an expanse of infinite darkness. She could see Ben, even though there wasn't any light shining on him.

They had spoken to each other about the Force, and Ben had explained what Leia had just accomplished.

He also told her other things. More _complicated_ things. He'd introduced her to the concept of the Dark Side.

Leia had always known about the Dark Side — she just never knew what to call it. There were Jedi—people like Ben, who used the Force for good—and those who used it for evil. Darth Vader was in the second category.

Ben had briefly (as to not give Leia too much to take in) discussed the Dark Side of the Force, and that Leia was _never_ to come in personal contact with it.

 _Ever._

If you let down your guard, the Darkness could consume you. It would encompass your very being, corrupting you from the inside out. You'd no longer be your own—the Dark Side would own you and control your actions, your thoughts. . .

The very idea was terrifying. And the fact that the Dark Side had take over her father. . .well, that was even worse.

Ben Kenobi had not told Leia what the Dark Side _felt_ like, though. Only what it could do to a person.

"Leia," Ben had said. "The Dark Side _will_ tempt you. But you must remain strong. Never let your anger or fear overpower your knowledge of what is right."

And with the horrifying dawn of realization, Leia knew what she had done.

"Hey," Luke said, giving Leia's shoulder a single shake. "Everything okay?"

The sudden sound of his voice snapped Leia back to the present, somewhat startlingly. She let out a shuddery breath.

"Y-yeah. Everything's. . .everything's fine."

She felt awful having to lie. But she couldn't tell Luke about what she did. About how bad things could've been.

Instead, she shook it off. She shoved that hollow temptation deep down, refusing to think about it for another second. Her primary focus had to be getting off this _Star Destroyer._

Luke offered her a hand, and Leia took it, allowing him to pull her to her feet. Luke didn't look entirely convinced that everything was "fine", but he let it go for now. He'd ask again later, when Leia was more apt to give an honest reply.

The Princess was already heading towards her satchel. She picked it up by the handle and tossed it to Luke. He caught it at the last second.

"Wha—" he started.

"Grab my pen for me," she said somewhat absently. Leia darted around the room, collecting the notes she'd taken from the HoloNet and Motti. She got down to peek under the bed and dresser, checking to make sure they wouldn't leave anything behind.

Luke followed her around, trying to give her the pen that she'd asked for, but Leia scampered around too quickly, not paying Luke any attention.

So, he paused for a moment to just observe. There was no point in trailing after her until she calmed down.

That was the thing with Leia. Sometimes she had a one-track mind and was able to focus on a single task for a decent amount of time. But other times, Leia's mind was split up into so many "tracks" that she jumped thoughtlessly from one task to another.

Finally, she skidded to a halt at the desk, opening the several drawers and digging through them. Triumphantly pulling out a piece of stiff paper, Leia held out her hand.

The pen leapt out of Luke's fingers into Leia's expectant palm. It scared him more than a little, considering pens didn't normally do that, but he shook it off as casually as possible.

From where he was standing, Luke could see Leia's arm moving as she hastily scrawled some sort of note. He inched closer to investigate.

Waves of stress tumbled off Leia in massive proportions—Luke could feel it, almost at a painful level. He wondered what she was thinking.

The Princess muttered to herself as she wrote. Luke tapped her on the shoulder and got one word out before she stopped him.

" _Wait._ If I don't finish this in the next two minutes, we're gonna have trouble."

Part of Luke wanted to ask _why_ they were going to have trouble, and with whom. But the unnatural intensity of his sister's words kept him silent.

He did, however, lean around Leia to read what she had written.

It appeared to be a message to the Imperials, offering somewhat of an explanation for what Leia was about to do.

The note read:

"To whom it may concern,

Due to unexpected complications of circumstances, we must depart ahead of the scheduled time. After all, we never really agreed to anything.

Please note that the Lieutenant General is in the closet because his behavior was the equivalent of _unacceptable._ However, he did nothing against your protocol (probably) and should therefore not be punished. Although, I do suggest a lesson on _tact._

Don't freak out, everyone. Darth Vader won't be mad at you. We're just a couple of kids, anyway, right?

Best wishes,

Princess Leia."

As soon as she scribbled her signature, Leia snatched her satchel from Luke's arms and jammed the pen into it.

She breathed, "Let's go," and headed for the door in a run. Luke was forced to follow, even though he was entirely unsure of how things were about to play out.

Leia palmed the door open, then stopped short when she saw who was outside. Two stormtroopers stood in the doorway, looking tense but skeptical.

Luke wondered if _this_ was the trouble Leia was talking about. She was really getting good at the whole "knowing the future" thing.

The first trooper said, "One of our cadets heard a crash and reporter back to us. We thought we should check it out. Is everything alright?"

Leia stared blankly for a moment, while a million different replies circled through her mind. She and Luke needed to get off the ship, and there wasn't time for setbacks such as this.

Finally, she said, "Oh. Uh, yes, everything's fine. We were just. . ." Leia fumbled for an excuse. What exactly could she say that would justify a loud crash?

Luckily, Luke jumped in. Somewhat confidently, he declared, "Wrestling." Leia turned sharply to look at him, an odd look on her face.

"You were. . .wrestling?" the second trooper asked, glancing at his partner. "For what purpose?"

The situation was already going downhill fast, and Leia was in no mood to drag the conversation out longer than necessary. So, she looked the soldier directly in the eyes and said, "Unexpected hormonal imbalances can sometimes lead to playful teenage frivolity." _Somehow_ , she kept a straight face.

Luke did not. He gaped at his sister, trying and failing to process the _many_ ways such a statement could be taken the wrong way.

However, Leia's explanation had the desired effect on the troopers, because they looked at each other, then at the twins, and replied, "I see. We'll be leaning then." They took off briskly down the hall.

Once the stormtroopers were safely out of earshot, Luke hissed, " _What_ did you just tell them?!"

"I told them that unexpected—"

"No, I _know_ what you _said._ What in the worlds possessed you to—to. . ." he trailed off, gesturing wildly as he searched for the right words. Leia watched for only a moment, before getting back to business.

"We have to get to the docking bay," Leia directed. "From there, we'll have to find a ship and pilot it to Coruscant."

She headed down the hallway, motioning for Luke to come with. His brain was almost _hurting_ from the amount of processing it was trying to do. First of all, the stormtroopers thought that Luke and Leia had been doing who knows _what_ together. Second, now his twin sister was on her way to the docking bay, so she could fly to Coruscant.

. . . _What?!_

"Leia, wait!" he called, jogging to catch up with her. "What are you _doing_?"

No one else was in the hall, so Leia felt much more comfortable explaining her idea. However, it _was_ kind of complicated, and the goal was going to be hard to reach.

"We're going to find Vader," she stated briskly.

" _Again_?" asked Luke, aghast.

"Yes, again. He's on Coruscant, and we're not. So, we need a way to get there."

You see, she wasn't ready to admit this to Luke, but Leia was anxious to leave for a few different reasons. Firstly, she really _was_ hoping to find Vader again, because the question of her parentage was going to drive her crazy. If he truly was her father. . .she had a right to know.

Next, Leia was scared of what she had done. Had she actually touched the Dark Side? Was it enough to do permanent damage, or had she merely brushed it? She hoped Ben could answer those questions.

And lastly, the Emperor was on board. Probably on a completely different level of the ship, but that made no difference if he decided to get nosy. The Emperor was _one_ with the Dark Side, and Leia had just awakened that part of herself. She had potentially jeopardized not only her own life, but Luke's as well.

The sooner she was far away, the better.

Hollowness still filled her chest, aching less frequently but still noticeably, and that frightened her. Leia wanted no part in the Darkness, but it wasn't going away. It stayed with her, compelling her to submit to it. . .to join it. . .to embrace it.

But she didn't. Leia's willpower was still strong enough to resist, so she would fight until the end. Darth Vader had let hatred and fear consume him, and that was when the Dark Side corrupted him. Therefore, Leia would trample the fear down with Light, and maybe it would chase the Darkness away.

"Do you actually know where the docking bay _is_?" inquired Luke, getting Leia's attention back on track.

"Um. . ." The answer she should have given was "no", but there _was_ a way to locate it. Reaching out through the Force, Leia searched for the necessary area, feeling for the assurance that meant she had found it.

"I got it," said Leia at last. "This way."

She turned a corner, suddenly appearing much more sure of herself. Luke could only assume that was a good thing. His sister was awfully distracted these days.

 **~•~**

Vader was in a meeting when it happened. When, all of a sudden, there was a strong tremor in the Force. It was so strong that Vader clenched the edge of the table, dealing with the painful onslaught in silence.

Unlike previous tremors he had felt, Vader noted that this one came from the Dark Side of the Force, and for whatever reason, that worried him.

Wait. _Why_ did that worry him?

There were other people around that table. Important Imperial people, in charge of planning the Empire Day parade on Coruscant. But their droning voices all blurred together as Vader's thoughts shifted to the source of the disturbance.

He stretched out his consciousness with the Force, searching the Void for any trace of the tremor. All across the expanse of space, Vader felt for evidence, but nothing revealed itself.

 _Until. . ._

When Darth Vader sensed something aboard his _Star Destroyer_ , his heart rate increased significantly. He thought it might be the Emperor, because his Dark presence was always painfully noticeable. But the disturbance hadn't come from Vader's master.

With an abrupt feeling of horror, he realized it had come from Leia.

And suddenly, Vader was gripping the table much tighter.

 **A/N: So, that happened. Though I gotta admit, this chapter was surprisingly fun to write! Considering most of it had to do with the Dark Side. . .yikes. Should I be questioning my mental stability? XD**

 **So. In case you were wondering why I haven't uploaded for like 3 months. . .basically, here's the reason: I haven't lost motivation for this story, especially considering all the chapters are prewritten. HOWEVER.**

 **As you may know, I started this story, like. . .more than two years ago. And my writing style has improved a lot since then ^_^" Sooo, I've been going through the previous chapters and revising them where needed. And, uh. It's taking longer than I anticipated XP**

 **So far, I have up to Chapter 35 (I think) fixed and re-uploaded on Wattpad. I'll work on getting them on FFN, too. And I've added chapter titles! Woo!**

 **So yep. HOPEFULLY the schedule will gradually shift back to normal. Until then, apologies in advance for any more long-ish waits o_O**

 **Also, anyone planning to go see the Han Solo movie coming out next month? It looks interesting, so we'll see :p**

 **-Lia**


	56. Chapter 56: Calling in Backup

**A/N: Hola! It's been a hot second since I've updated, but get this: SCHOOL'S OUT for the summa! No more homework, studying, or unwanted social endeavors for MONTHS. And you know what that means...yep, more time for FaNfiCtiOn! :P**

 **I'm actually off on a mission trip to Jamaica tomorrow, which will last a full week. So I'll have some time during driving and plane rides to be working on some editing and whatnot, and hopefully the remaining chapters of this story will be up before you know it. I know, I know...it's been dragging on for a while now. But anyway.**

 **ONWARD!**

 **WHEEEEEEEEEEEE!**

The docking bay was exactly where Leia had thought it would be. However, it was also much more _crowded_ than she'd expected. Stormtroopers filled almost every corner, Imperial officers bustled this way and that, and the collection of ships was unlike anything Luke had ever seen.

"What now?" Luke asked, skeptically eyeing the commotion taking place below them.

Leia was peering through the window as well, analyzing the situation. Her eyes scanned the uneven flow of people from one side of the space to another—what were so many people doing there, anyway?

"It kinda looks like they're preparing for something," observed Luke.

He wasn't wrong. The chaotic hustle was definitely starting to look less casual and more nervous, as if the Imperials really _were_ making some sort of preparations.

 _What for, though?_

There was a rather ominous black shuttle docked near the exit, its ramp lowered. Was it there for a purpose? Had someone recently boarded?

Or. . .

Was someone _about_ to board?

 _Oh no._

Besides Vader, there was only one person Leia knew of that would travel in a black shuttle.

If Leia's theory was correct, the twins were in absolute immediate danger. As in, they needed to leave. _Now._ But the last thing Leia wanted to do was freak Luke out, because he would panic and then _she_ would panic and then they'd be found out for _sure—_

"Leia!"

She turned to her brother. "Yeah?" It didn't come out sounding as calm as she wanted; Leia's voice cracked nervously at the end.

"What do we do?"

The princess chewed her lip thoughtfully. With all those people around, there was no _way_ she and Luke would be able to board a ship. And the Emperor could show up any moment now, and what if the twins couldn't hide their Force-signatures fast enough? They would be found out, and Leia didn't even _want_ to imagine what would happen after that.

But what other way out was there? Was there another docking bay? The Star Destroyer might be equipped with escape pods, but that wasn't a safe or ideal option.

For once, Leia was all out of ideas.

"I don't know," she admitted sullenly, gazing down at the Imperials scampering from one task to the next.

That was a first, Luke thought. Leia _always_ knew. He could always count on her to at least have a plan of action, even if it wasn't entirely logical right away. In fact, he was growing almost happily accustomed to following Leia's bold ideas.

But now, as he watched his sister pace back and forth in front of him, Luke was seeing a different side of her. She was scared about something. It was obvious by the way she was acting, but he could also _feel_ it. Somehow, Luke was picking up on some kind of high-level stress coming from Leia.

"What's wrong?" Luke ventured, even though he wasn't sure Leia would actually tell him the truth. She hardly ever opened up to him like that anymore.

Leia mumbled something indistinct and never slowed her pacing.

"What?" asked Luke, frowning.

Suddenly, Leia looked up at him with such a startled expression that Luke's heart rate involuntarily quickened.

" _What_?" he repeated. Leia stared at him, her eyes once again searching his own for something that apparently only she could see. After a moment, she turned back to the window, then to Luke again.

"You still remember how to hide your Force-signature, right?" she said, the words coming out faster than normal. They were both surprised that no one had discovered their very obvious hiding place yet; it was only a matter of time before a stormtrooper or officer marched their way.

"Yeah, why?" Luke replied, confused.

"Because you need to do it. Now. Like, _right_ now," ordered Leia, now frequently casting anxious glances towards the docking bay.

Luke knew better than to question something like that. Surprisingly, he was able to disguise his signature fairly easily. Hopefully it would hold out until Leia gave the "all clear". But that didn't do much to ease his mind. What had Leia so paranoid?

When Luke vocalized his question, Leia gave him a grim look and whispered, "The Emperor."

Oh. Oh boy. Luke was going to be sick.

Leia added, "And we can't use one of these ships. There's no way."

And then, like a beam of light was shining down on him, Luke got an idea.

"Maybe we don't need one," he said slowly, the idea taking more of a shape in his mind. His eyes roamed down to the leather bag over Leia's shoulder, and the plan came to him full-force.

"What do you mean?" Leia asked dubiously.

"Do you still have the comlink?" He was excited now and went to grab Leia's shoulders. "The one from Han."

She blinked, somewhat lost.

"Leia, the _comlink_! Where is it?" Luke demanded, shaking his sister slightly. Leia snapped out of it then, blinking rapidly before letting Luke's question sink in.

She dug her hands into the satchel and removed the old Imperial comm—it was chipped and worn, which made it distinguishable from the comlink Vader had given them. Leia didn't yet know what Luke was going to suggest, but it had to be better than anything her own jumbled mind could produce.

Speaking in low tones, Luke said, "If we can call Han and send him our coordinates, he could pick us up in the _Falcon_."

Leia's eyes widened as she considered that idea. She looked out the window one last time, pondering her current options. It was either call Han for help, or figure this out on her own. Realistically, there wasn't any easy way out, but one option was definitely easier.

Maybe, just _maybe_ , she was willing to set aside her pride _this one time._ After all, she would really like to survive this endeavor.

Han was _so_ not going to let her live this down.

"Fine," Leia relented begrudgingly. "But how do we send our coordinates?"

"They have a control room, right? If we could find one, I'm sure I could figure something out."

Something occurred to Leia, just then.

"Hang on," she said. "How far away are we from Tatooine?"

Some stunned silence.

Simultaneously, the twins groaned.

 **~•~**

Vader had accepted that he was no longer paying attention to anything being said around him. Perhaps someone was speaking to him, but he simply didn't care. He did, however, have a _very_ bad feeling.

How was it possible that a _dark_ disturbance had come from Leia? _Leia_ , the upbeat and pure-hearted Princess that was undeniably Padmé's daughter? One of Vader's _children_ that kept him unwillingly tethered to the Light? It didn't make sense.

Although. . .

Vader knew he had not been stable as a Padawan. His Dark potential most likely outweighed that of the Light, even though everyone always insisted his destiny was to be the Chosen One. Especially Obi-Wan. He could see Vader no other way.

The Dark Lord remembered what it felt like to be. . .Anakin. Anakin Skywalker was weak. He had been divided into two sides—Dark and Light—and was unable to choose between them. His temper and power weighed down the Dark side of the scale, but Padmé always kept him in the Light. And somewhere deep inside him, he'd always had a steel will that wouldn't allow such a thing as the corruption of his soul.

But that evil potential was always there, lying suppressed and dormant in the depths of Anakin's subconscious. When Padmé's life had been in danger, his will to protect her was greater than his will to hold back the Dark Side, and he had let down his guard.

Vader's children, he knew, were even stronger than he was. Or, at least, they had the potential to be so. The question was, would they ever _reach_ that potential? Each of them showed great promise in the use of the Force. . .but that went both ways. Their power held potential for _either_ side of the Force. Dark _or_ Light.

Vader's plan had been fairly simple: don't interfere. The Emperor had fooled Vader into submitting to the Darkness, and while Vader _was_ allowed somewhat of a choice in the matter. . .it had been a mistake. A terrible, horrible mistake. And he _knew_ that, but it was too late to turn back. Vader couldn't change how things had turned out for him.

He just wanted to make sure his children never ended up like _him._ However, he wanted to leave them a choice, and their individual decisions would remain up to them. Vader would not press either option upon them—he believed Obi-Wan (and eventually, maybe others) would teach the twins what was the right path.

That was the plan, anyway. Now, Vader was having some irritating second thoughts about it.

Feeling Leia touch the Dark Side, even if for only a few seconds, had shaken him. Maybe it was that nagging knowledge that he couldn't bear to see his family lose themselves to a life of Darkness and emptiness, for such was the life of Vader.

Maybe Vader was worried that his master had found the twins and was already trying to corrupt them—Luke and Leia were clever enough, but they were still _children._ They were still testing the extent of their powers, like fawns balancing precariously on four legs for the first time. The Emperor would find and exploit that vulnerability.

And maybe Vader cared about those kids more than he'd ever admit. He knew they would never accept him as their father, and he understood entirely. But they were his only remaining connection to the love of his life, and he wasn't yet willing to let that go. Perhaps he never would be.

But what could he do about it, trapped by social convention on Coruscant? The twins were an agonizing distance away.

All he could do was wait. Wait to see if there was another tremor. Wait and hope that it wasn't already too late.

 **~•~**

"I can't _believe_ this," Leia growled, stomping through the sleek hall with Luke by her side. "Why didn't we think of that before?! Han could be _light years_ away!"

"But we don't _know_ that," offered Luke. He was attempting to reconcile his plan before Leia threw it out the window altogether. But. . .she was right. They didn't know where the _Devastator_ was, or how far away Han was from it. Leia was currently on the hunt for a control room (preferably with a viewport).

"What if there are people there?" Luke asked, referencing the control room. Places like that were usually swarming with officers, cadets and technicians.

"There won't be," was Leia's confident reply. "Practically everyone is preparing for the Emperor's departure. We'll find a small one."

There could very well be more than one control deck in the ship. Star Destroyers were quite vast, and since they didn't have a tiny cockpit like Han's ship, it was possible that there could be one or more control rooms from which Imperials flew the ship.

If the twins found it, they would be able to determine their current coordinates and send them to Han via comlink. That would open a door for Han to come find them, pick the twins up somehow, and fly away. And they'd all live happily ever after. . .right?

Wrong, Leia realized regretfully. Even if she and Luke _did_ manage to escape, there would still be so many other issues to work out. Luke and Leia's family situations. Their newfound relationship that neither wanted to leave behind. Whatever unscripted feelings Leia had for Han. And the looming presence of a truth so unbearable that Leia still refused to fully admit it to herself. The truth about her father.

She hung her head, focusing on just moving forward down the hall. Those problems would have to be dealt with eventually; they couldn't be swept under the metaphorical rug forever. But for now, the rug would have to do. There simply wasn't time to focus on such things right now.

When Leia looked up, her heart skipped a beat. Luke was not anywhere to be seen. The princess glanced around anxiously, taking some quick steps forward.

"Luke?" called Leia, as loud as she dared. There was no reply.

Just as she was about to explode with panic, Luke's blond head poked out of a doorway on the left side of the hallway. Nearly scared the living daylights out of his sister, though.

She put a hand to her chest, panting heavily.

"Found it!" was Luke's cheerful exclamation. He motioned for Leia to follow him and ducked back through the doorway.

Although she was still trying to calm her racing heart, Leia blew out an exasperated breath and headed after her brother. She found him in the middle of a command center, surrounded by control panels. Flashing buttons and lights blinked in all different colors. A wide viewport ran along the back wall, and Leia could see the vast expanse of stars that filled the void outside.

To Leia's shock, nobody else occupied the control area. Only Luke and herself.

Unfortunately, she had no clue how to use anything in the room. All she saw was blinking lights and beeping buttons. None of it made any sense.

Luke was a different story. He strolled giddily among the panels full of ship controls. A headset lay on one of those panels, and Luke picked it up.

"Don't even think about it," Leia warned before sidling up next to Luke and yanking the headset from his fingers. The last thing they needed was to accidentally contact an officer on Vader's personal Star Destroyer. Risks were alright in normal circumstances. But this was not a _normal_ circumstance. They needed to focus on sending Han their coordinates.

"Can you figure it out?" Leia asked her twin, gesturing to the panel.

" _Can_ I?" Luke replied excitedly.

He dropped into one of the chairs and began flicking switches. Leia, having served her purpose for the moment, took off idly in a random direction, intending to explore the area while she waited. The control center was not exactly massive, but it occupied a good deal of space in the ship. Even the viewport was probably as long as the _Millennium Falcon._

Leia winced at the memory of Han's ship. Junky and cramped as it was, Leia had to admit that she missed it. In comparison with the _Devastator_ , the _Falcon_ seemed homey and comfortable, not rickety and old. Leia missed Han, too. A lot, she realized.

She slowly approached the viewport and observed the stars beyond. Ever since Leia was a little girl, she'd wanted to see those stars. Not the kind of stars one could see from a bedroom window, but the stars you couldn't see until you were out among them. The bright white pinpoints of light that shone with such brilliance that you felt small just by looking at them. There were so _many._

Was this freedom? And if it was, did Leia like it? Was it how she'd always imagined it?

She remembered the feeling from Mos Eisley—that internal satisfaction of blending in and immersing herself in a completely new culture. Everyone looked the same, but everyone was so _different._ And no one looked at her like she was odd or improper or _wrong._ She was accepted there, even though nobody knew who she was.

Maybe Leia liked being anonymous for once. If nobody knew you were supposed to be acting a certain way, they had no expectations for you. You could go about your life as you pleased, no questions asked.

But there was a catch. There was _always_ a catch.

As much as Leia enjoyed that freedom and the opportunity to finally be _nobody_. . .well, she had to admit that she missed home. The homesickness had been established several days ago, but Leia just couldn't shake it. It sat on the back burner of her mind, continuously popping up when it was least convenient. She had _enough_ things to worry about, for crying out loud!

Leia's mind felt like it was being pulled in so many different directions: home, her brother, Vader, Han, the Light, the Dark. . .she knew what was wrong and what was right, but for some reason, it was so hard to choose where to go. She still felt that numb pulsing deep inside herself, _calling_ her. It wanted her. It _needed_ her.

But _she_ didn't need _it._

And for now, that would have to do as a sufficient resistance.

Leia refocused on her surroundings, noticing absently that her hand had somehow moved so her palm was flat against the thick glass. She frowned. Her faint reflection blinked back at her, and Leia wondered if she _always_ looked so woeful. She hoped not.

What if their plan didn't work? What if Tatooine was too far away and Han couldn't come for them in time? What would they do then?

As Leia was contemplating these things, something changed. She felt something. . .

That feeling was telling her to look.

"Look where?" Leia whispered, glancing around, confused. The tingling was getting stronger, and though it was sudden, the princess thought it'd be best to pay attention. There was an atmosphere of urgency that fell upon her, and she somehow knew she'd have to hurry.

"Look _where_?" Leia asked again, voice sounding more desperate this time. Taking a couple frantic steps back, still searching for an answer, Leia felt her heart rate quickening. If the matter was so urgent, why wasn't she getting a response?!

She stopped. This wasn't the right way to accomplish anything. She needed to calm down; the Force would not connect with her until she _allowed_ it to.

Leia let her eyelids lower, inhaling and exhaling slowly. She looked within herself, feeling for the warm safety of the Force. All awareness of the outside world faded away as Leia slipped into darkness—but a good darkness. It was the empty void in which she had conversed with Ben Kenobi not so long ago. That place felt warm and safe, despite being completely empty.

Silence. A calming, steady silence. Leia enveloped herself in it and opened her mind to the Force. Briefly, she mused that her Force-signature may not be hidden as she did this, but it was hard to be worried when she felt this relaxed.

And just like that, Leia felt the Force come to her. It didn't wait before connecting with her, but she didn't mind. The connection seemed to be stronger that it had been previously. Yet. . .it was noticeably harder to _achieve_ that connection. If that was a result of the Darkness, there may be a problem.

But again—it was hard to really worry about anything right then.

 _Look where?_ Leia asked the Force, not sure what she was expecting. The Force was an energy field, not a person, so it could not _talk_ to her. However, it always seemed to have a voice that Leia couldn't place. Not any human voice she knew, but it carried a somewhat human _tone_. Almost like a _lot_ of voices, all speaking perfectly synchronized and in the same pitch. Odd, but Leia could describe it no other way.

Now, those voices blended together and gathered around her. They said, _Down._

And before she had sufficient time to even fully register the reply, Leia's eyes snapped open and the bright command deck lights sent her off balance. Clumsily, Leia stumbled back.

"Down?"

What did that mean? Look down. . .at the floor? At her feet? Look below?

That last one felt right. Leia rushed back to the window and pressed both hands against the glass. Slowly, almost _afraid_ to see if she was correct, the princess gazed down as far as she could.

She gasped.

" _Luke_!" She bolted from the window, skidding wildly to her brother's side. He looked up from whatever he was doing, fingers halted in midair over a lever.

"What?" he replied. By that time, Leia was already next to him, pulling persistently at his arm.

"C'mon, c'mon!" she said excitedly, hauling Luke out of his chair and dragging him across the room. He objected loudly, exclaiming that he was _just_ about to pinpoint their location. It made no difference to Leia—she knew _exactly_ where they were.

"Luke, _honestly_! Come on!"

She pulled him over to the viewport and pointed. "Look!"

Eyes glancing around slowly, Luke shrugged slightly and said, "Look _where_?"

Leia took a breath. "Down."

Together, the twins got close to the glass and peered down at what lay below the massive ship. And there, sitting literally under their noses the whole time, was the planet of Tatooine.

Luke's mouth fell open.

"W-we—we've been stationed above Tatooine this _entire_ time!" he said, not quite believing his eyes.

Their room had not been outfitted with a viewport, so the twins had never seen where they were in space. They'd just assumed the Star Destroyer was on some sort of plotted course. But. . .apparently not.

Vader must have given orders to stay above Tatooine. . .but _why_? Had he known they would try to leave? Was he _allowing_ them to leave?

"Call Han," Luke breathed, suddenly. Now that they knew escape was possible, the metaphorical clock was ticking. Emperor Palpatine's dark signature pressed heavily against them even now, alerting them to his obvious presence aboard the ship. From what the twins knew, he hadn't felt them yet. But Luke would rather not wait around to find out.

Leia understood these unsaid things. She nodded once, biting her lip grimly. Calling Han may take a large chunk out of her pride, but now wasn't the time for contemplating dignity. After all she'd been through, dignity seemed pretty pointless anyway.

Digging quickly through her satchel, Leia's fingers felt for the comm. There were two—only one of them was Han's—but she touched one and got a feeling that it was right. She trusted that feeling.

Leia held the comlink up in front of her, allowing herself one more moment of rest. As soon as she made the call, the plan would be in action, and they'd have to move. With the Emperor so close, risks were a _no-go._ Everything would have to be executed as precisely and carefully as possible.

"Leia!" Luke prompted.

And with that, Leia pushed the call button.

 **~•~**

 _BEEP!_

Han groaned, still half-asleep. He rolled over on Ben Kenobi's bed, which Ben had given up for him several days ago.

 _BEEP!_

"Chewie, cut it out," Han slurred deliriously. Chewbacca was not actually in the room to object.

 _BEEP! BEEP!_

Blowing out an irritated sigh, Han sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes and running a hand through his tousled hair. He was already stressed out as it was. Since when did Kenobi's house start _beeping—_?

Suddenly realizing what was happening, Han muttered an oath and swung legs his over the edge of the bed. He practically pounced on Ben's small desk, where the comlink was sitting.

 _BEEP!_

Not really knowing whether he wanted Leia to be on the other end or not, Han hesitated one bare second before answering. He was greeted with a young, nervous female voice.

"Han. . . ?"

He breathed in once. ". . .Leia?"

" _Han_!"

Han released a sigh of relief; Leia was okay. She sounded noticeably less nervous now, so that was good. But before Han could think of a clever reply, Leia was talking again.

"Han, listen, we don't have much time. We have to get off this ship, and you're our only chance. You have to—"

"Whoa, whoa, _hang_ on, Princess," Han interjected, blinking back confusion. "Where are you? What's happening?"

Leia sounded exasperated when she replied, "On Darth Vader's ship—you know that. Han, you have to _listen_ —"

"Are you alright? What's—"

"Han—"

"What's all this about 'not much time'? You can't just dump everything on me without any explanation! What's going _on_ —?"

" _Han, listen to me_!" Leia yelled. Her loud tone made the small speaker crackle slightly, but she had Han's attention. He was already dashing about the room, gathering things and getting dressed faster than what was humanly possible.

Leia continued, "The Emperor is aboard, and Luke and I need to _leave._ There's no way we can get out of here on our own. We need you to come in the _Falcon._ What are you doing right now?"

Struggling to hastily pull a shirt over his head and pull himself together, Han barked, "Nothing important!"

"Are you outside?" Leia asked sharply.

"I can be!" was Han's response.

"Then go outside!"

Han had no idea why Leia wanted him outside—it shouldn't make much of a difference to her either way. But the tone of Leia's voice carried urgency, and Han wasn't about to ignore that fact. If the Emperor really was aboard the same ship as the twins, they were in grave danger. And Han was their friend; he would do everything he could to help them.

With Leia yelling for him to hurry, Han bolted out of the bedroom, into the main living space, and out the oval-shaped doorway. The morning sunlight was harsh as it beat down on the sand; Han shielded his eyes, because he was essentially still half-asleep.

He glanced around the desert, one raised hand casting a shadow across his eyes.

"Okay, I'm out. Now _what's happ—_ "

"Look up," demanded Leia. "Do you see anything?"

Han obeyed, searching the hazy sky for something—he didn't know what. The Suns were rising higher, intensifying the amount of sunlight shining down on him. He didn't see anything. . .

Wait.

There _was_ something. A small shape, distant and darkly colored. If Han looked hard enough, the shape seemed to sparkle a bit.

"Han? _Do_ you see anything?" Leia asked anxiously.

"A ship, I think. It's awfully close if I can see it from here. What? Is that what I'm looking at?"

"You're looking at the _Devastator_. You're looking at _us_!"

Han's lips parted in shock as he held his gaze on the faint shape above him.

"Are you _kidding me_?"

"No! Is the _Falcon_ close? You have to get moving!"

"You want _me_ to fly up _there_? Where the _Emperor_ is? Wonderful." He nodded to himself, as if saying, "Of course, something like this _would_ happen to me."

"Yes. I need you to—"

"So you admit it, then?"

Leia's voice faltered for only a moment. "What?"

"You admit that you need me?" A cocky smile curved up one side of his mouth.

"W-well, _yes_ , but—"

"That's all I needed to hear," Han remarked, still smiling slyly. His grin got bigger when Leia (still slightly flustered) began objecting, trying to mend the new hole in her pride.

"Han, this is _not_ the time. Get to the _Falcon_ and I'll tell you the plan as you go. _Hurry_!"

Nodding once, even though Leia couldn't see him, Han took off around the back of Kenobi's home, where the _Millennium Falcon_ was parked. He'd moved it to Ben's house recently, just in case an emergency arose. Turns out, it had been a good idea.

Running up the lowered ramp, footsteps pounding against the metal, Han hollered, "Chewie, let's go! Get 'er movin'!"

Chewbacca roared a question, and as Han skidded into the cockpit, he replied, "We're pickin' up the twins. And _fast_."

Not a few moments later, the engine was whirring and the _Falcon_ lifted off the sandy terrain.

Dropping into his seat, Han muttered into the comlink, "Hang in there, Princess. I'm on my way."

 **A/N: And here we are again. How'd you like it?**

 **We've reached our climax, buddies. Things can only get better from here. . .right? _"**

 **Thanks for sticking around! You guys rock.**

 **-Lia**


	57. Chapter 57: Eleven Would Be Proud

**A/N: Hello and welcome back to MLAL! As you can see, I somehow managed to NOT skip a month between this chapter and the last one. I'd call that an improvement!**

 **Also, quick question: would any of you happen to know what the best FFN upload day is? I thought someone said it was Wednesday, but I'm not sure. Let me know if you're knowledgeable about stuff like that XD**

 **Sorry in advance for any typos in this chapter. It was proofread at a very late hour, heh.**

 **WHEEEEEEEEEEE!**

Luke's voice held panic as he asked, "What now?"

Leia was just as unsure. Their plan was in motion, but now that the ball was rolling, no one knew what to do with it. Han was on his way (Leia knew, because he'd told them), which was good news. However, the twins had no idea what to tell him or where to go. The Emperor was still somewhere on the ship, so they didn't want to risk leaving the control room. But in order to escape, they _had_ to leave the control room.

"Well?" Luke prompted. "You're always the one with the _brilliant_ plan! Do something!"

The emphasis on _brilliant_ made Leia question Luke's sincerity, but she was too confused to be mad just then. Various probable outcomes were running through her mind, none of them ending well, and they were beginning to drive her closer to the edge.

Instead of answering Luke, Leia spoke hurriedly into the comlink, "Han. What do we do?"

She didn't _mean_ to ask _that_. It just slipped out. And now it sounded like their plan lacked mandatory structure, which it did, but _Han_ wasn't supposed to know that!

Han's reply was expected.

" _What_?!"

Leia winced, already regretting the question she'd asked.

Han continued, "I thought _you_ had a plan! I can't just pick you up! You said the _Emperor_ is aboard! It's not like I can fire a few shots and storm the place!"

Leia's hand tightened around the comm as she bit her lip. Luke was standing close by, watching his sister expectantly, which wasn't really helping.

When Leia didn't respond to Han, he hollered, "We're already headed up to the Star Destroyer! You'd better come up with something _quick_ , or else this whole thing goes to—"

"I'm _thinking_!" Leia yelled, startling Luke.

"We don't have _time_ for that, Your Worship! You've got ten minutes, _maximum._ "

From somewhere in the background, Chewbacca roared an agreement.

With all other options gone, Leia came up with the only plan that ever seemed to work: spontaneity.

"Luke, come on!" she ordered, charging across the control room and out the door. He followed obediently, getting an idea of what Leia was about to do. Vaguely, anyway. No one could ever be too sure of what Leia was about to do.

They ran down the hall and past the small viewport that overlooked the docking bay. Leia could only think that time was ticking and she had to move fast. As usual, a haphazard plan came to her as she was sprinting into danger—she only hoped it would actually work.

 _I have to trust the Force._

By some miracle, the twins ended up a level below the viewport, standing in the wide doorway of the docking bay. Leia skidded to a halt, sticking out her arms to warn Luke before he crashed into her. He stopped just in time and peeked around her to see into the docking bay.

There were still all kinds of people hurrying around in several directions, but the general chaos seemed to have died down a bit. The black shuttle was still parked in the same spot, but the ramp was no longer lowered. The Emperor was aboard his shuttle.

Leia's mind rushed to find more components to pull her plan together. Her eyes darted from the shuttle to a group of stormtroopers standing off to one side, just around the corner. Then from the troopers to the open docking bay port entrance. And she thought of Han, who was on his way to that very place.

If the Emperor was inside his shuttle, he would be sitting down somewhere in the back—his personal pilots would be flying the shuttle in the cockpit. Han would be there in less than seven minutes. People were starting to clear out now, leaving mostly stormtroopers and a few lieutenants and officers. And the whine of the shuttle's engines filled the room; it would be taking off soon.

 _Maybe. . ._

Ducking back out of the doorway, Leia held up the comlink and said, "Han. Come up behind the ship, and when I say so, fly to the main docking bay entrance."

He replied almost instantly. "Copy that. Uh. . .why, exactly?"

"We've got ourselves a full house."

"You gonna clear it out?"

"That's the plan, yeah."

Han paused only for a moment before saying, "Knock 'em dead, Princess. We'll be waiting for your signal. Stay on this channel."

Relieved, Leia nodded. "Yeah. Okay."

Han would go around back and had a sense of what to do. That bought Leia a little time, so her morale was slightly higher as she tucked the comm into her satchel and turned to Luke.

"What I'm about to do is going to look crazy," Leia began. It wasn't the best opener, which she realized when Luke's face took on a more worried look. Moving past that, she continued.

"But I need you to trust me. And. . .trust the Force. I've never done this before, so—" Leia broke the sentence off and shrugged, hoping that would be enough to subdue any questions Luke had. He looked at her a little strangely but nodded.

"Well, uh. . .I trust you. And I trust the Force. So. . .I guess I'll follow your lead?"

The last part sounded a whole lot like a question, but Leia chose to ignore that. The shuttle was about to take off—she could _feel_ it. But that wasn't the problem. The problem was getting everyone out of the docking bay before Han could get there. Thankfully, Leia had a plan.

Sort of.

With a nod of consent from Luke, Leia took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and marched straight into the docking bay. Luke's eyes widened, but there was nothing he could do now. He debated following her and eventually took off after Leia. They were twins, after all, and he was determined to stick by her side. Even if that meant risking death to go along with some random, half-crazed plan she came up with.

What else was new?

When Luke found Leia in the docking bay, she was standing in front of the group of stormtroopers, hands at her sides and a calm expression on her face. Luke didn't understand _how_ she managed to look so relaxed; _he_ was definitely freaking out inside.

He cautiously approached his sister and stood next to her. Her eyes gave him the quickest of glances, just obvious enough for him to know she saw him next to her. Then, all her attention was focused on the stormtroopers who were talking to her.

"You two shouldn't be down here," one said. The tone wasn't extremely angry, most likely because the twins were known around the ship by now as Vader's "guests". None of the Imperials spoke to them harshly now, but it did always sound rather condescending.

Leia's expression didn't waver the slightest bit as she raised one arm, two fingers extended in a sort of salute. She waved her hand once as she spoke.

"You are needed on the upper level for maintenance work."

Luke blinked, confused and now also nervous. What was she _doing_? Obviously the stormtroopers weren't needed elsewhere, and surely they would know that. Why did Leia think an outright lie would work like that?

There was some silence as the troopers looked at one another, probably just as confused as Luke. But oddly enough, they didn't reply.

Leia, still as calm as before, waved her hand and tried again.

"You are needed on the upper level for maintenance work."

Her voice sounded steady, commanding. Like she was telling them absolute facts.

Luke felt a cold tingle move throughout his body, but he didn't know where it came from. He looked at his sister, and she risked another glance at him. In that single moment, Luke saw a glimmer of fear in her eyes, as if even she was wondering if she'd gone too far. She shivered involuntarily, and the rising panic on her face worsened.

And that's when the leading stormtrooper cocked his head to one side and said, "We are needed on the upper level for maintenance work."

Luke heard Leia inhale sharply.

She said, "And you will take the whole crew with you!"

"And I will take the whole crew with me."

Before Luke had time to figure out what was happening, the group of stormtroopers all muttered something into their helmet communicators and headed out the door, soon to be followed by every Imperial worker in the room.

And because they were so caught up in watching that phenomenon, Luke and Leia were surprised when they heard the black shuttle's engines get louder and saw it take off into the inky black of space.

Another uncomfortable chill shot through Luke's body, and he looked and saw Leia shivering again. Her arms were wrapped around herself for a moment, but then she blinked, apparently remembering reality.

She yanked the comm back out.

"Han! It's go time!"

Seconds later (seconds that felt like hours), the glorious hulk of the _Millennium Falcon_ appeared outside the docking bay. Leia's knees felt weak as she watched the ship land in front of them. It was the speediest landing she'd ever seen Han make. Then again, she hadn't seen him make many landings.

The ramp lowered, and suddenly Leia was running towards it. She knew Luke was behind her, but everything was a blur as she raced wildly for the ramp, her mind set solely on finally being back in the _Falcon._ She would be with Han. She would be with Luke. They could figure everything out together and she could stop thinking about that Darkness that wouldn't leave her alone. There was still a chance for everything to be okay again. They could—

All at once, Leia collided with another person whose arms went around her, and she knew without looking up that it was Han. One of his arms extended, probably meant for Luke, but all Leia could do was hold on. She was gripping Han so tightly, head pressed into his chest and eyes squeezed shut. He was talking to her, she knew. She could hear his voice, and _gosh_ she'd missed his voice so much. She'd missed _him_ so much, but she didn't realize _how_ much until that moment. Just for a few seconds, everything felt normal and Leia's shoulders relaxed—

Then she realized what in the worlds she was doing.

Leia hastily pulled away, awkwardly disentangling her arms from Han's. She could feel heat rush to her cheeks, and she could only hope that Han didn't see the blush that erupted across her face. Her eyes turned to the familiar metallic floor as she tucked a strand of hair behind one ear.

Han said something, but Leia didn't catch it.

"What?" she asked, forcing herself to make eye contact. It wasn't easy. Getting pulled into Han's hazel orbs was a huge distraction, and she was afraid she'd only stare. . .and that would make things even worse. Whatever she was feeling would have to be shoved to the sidelines—again. At least for now.

"I said, did you miss me?" Han replied with a half-grin that looked smug but also somehow sincere. But the sincere part was barely there, so Leia played along and kept up the act.

"You wish," she scoffed, flashing a cocky smile of her own.

The two of them held each other's gaze for a second longer, and Leia saw Han's eyes sparkle. He winked at her and turned to talk to Luke.

She blinked. What was that all about? That wink. What did it mean? Was he just engaging in more meaningless teasing (which shouldn't be surprising, since she was used to that)? Or was he trying to communicate something more?

Leia knew she was probably overthinking it. She was good at that. Especially lately.

When she tuned into Han and Luke's conversation, Luke was on the verge of diving into the whole story of how and why they came to be on Vader's ship. Leia would have joined in—if only to set details straight—but there was a more important issue.

Regardless of the possible implications of the action, Leia grabbed Han's hand and dragged him toward the cockpit. At first, he dug his heels into the floor and protested, but then Leia spoke.

"I got the Imperials out of the docking bay, but the shuttle took off right after. We need to leave. _Now._ "

"What? The Emperor's gone! Why—"

This time, Luke cut in.

"Wait, uh, Leia? When you were talking to the stormtroopers. . .what exactly were you doing?"

She paused in leading Han along.

"Uh. . ." Clearly she wasn't prepared to answer the question right away. In fact, she had been hoping the chaos of the getaway would distract Luke from thinking about it entirely.

Leia finally said, "Well, it's kind of hard to explain. It's, uh. . .I think it's. . .mind control. A uh, Jedi thing." She scratched the back of her neck, nervously averting her eyes.

The room went silent. The only sound was the _Falcon_ 's engine running as Chewbacca waited for takeoff. Leia felt her heart pounding inside her ribcage. Why was she so nervous about admitting that? They shouldn't care that she used mind control, it was a desperate situation. Maybe they were just surprised?

"You can _do_ that?" Han finally asked, sounding shocked and maybe even a little jealous.

Leia nodded shyly, suddenly very self-conscious. That obnoxious heat was rising to her face again, and the knowledge of that only made Leia blush even _more._

What was _happening_ to her? She must have been getting soft. Frowning, Leia decided it was all Han's fault. It was always Han's fault. He didn't have a right to make her feel that way, especially when there was danger lurking right outside the door.

Literally.

And that thought brought Leia back to the present.

"Who _cares_ about that? The _point_ is, I had to use the Force for that! And the Emperor was so _close_ , and I knew it was a risk but I did it anyway! And I just _know_ he felt me use it, and he was really mad, and I felt him try to call to me with the Dark Side, but I was too busy thinking about—"

What had she been thinking about? She didn't remember. Her main focus was just getting everyone out of the room. Mind control wasn't part of the plan; it was _never_ part of the plan. Her real plan had been to throw one of Han's tools across the room and stage a massive distraction to freak everyone out enough for them to scatter. But when she'd gone out into the docking bay, the plan took a completely different direction.

She'd never seen anyone use a Jedi mind trick before, so technically she shouldn't have known how to go about that at all. Something had taken over her, and suddenly she'd just _known_ what to do. And she _was_ aware of the risk. The Emperor was sitting in that shuttle. Leia had never been closer to him in her life. She could _feel_ his dark presence more intensely than ever before. It filled the room and knocked into her and spun through her mind like a tornado, sucking in all the joy and confidence.

That's why the mind trick didn't work the first time. Because her mind was distracted by the Darkness pressing on her at all sides. The second try, it almost didn't work again. She could feel her hold on the Force slipping away, so she pushed harder, knowing the whole time that the Emperor was only becoming more and more aware of her and her powers. And Luke was so close to her. . .she wondered if he could feel the Darkness too. Or what if the Emperor was sensing _both_ twins? Then he would capture them and it would be all her fault.

She'd shared that look with her brother. His eyes were worried when they met her own, and Leia hoped he wasn't worrying about _her_. But she had to keep trying, so she forced herself to strengthen the connection and relax. And that's when the mind control actually worked. She'd been so shocked that she almost didn't make the addition of, "And you will take the whole crew with you." It was a last minute addition. She didn't think she'd get that far.

When the shuttle took off, the Darkness pressed against her even harder, and she knew the Emperor could feel her. Maybe he could even feel Luke. It was all her fault.

She remembered shivering. The Darkness always gave her chills. At that time, the Emperor's shuttle flew away, taking the dark presence with it. Well, almost. Leia still felt a cold lump in her stomach, and that never meant anything good. If they didn't hurry, the Emperor would be back.

So Leia threw out everything she was going to say. Instead, she looked up at Han with pleading eyes and said, "I _promise_ I'll explain everything later. But if we don't leave now, the Emperor will find us."

Something about her voice or expression must have been different, because Han didn't even argue this time. He only nodded once—it was a grim, but determined nod—and hurried along to the cockpit, pulling Leia with him.

"Chewie, let's get outta here!" Han barked once he entered the cockpit. His copilot was lounging lazily in his chair, furry arms crossed behind his head. Chewbacca looked up at the sound of Han's voice. At once, he was flipping switches and pushing buttons.

It was only when Han tried to sit down that Leia noticed their hands were still entwined. With a little disgusted noise, Leia shook her hand loose, and Han slid into the pilot's chair with a roll of his eyes. But on the inside, Leia's mind was trying to process the feeling surging through her. Holding Han's hand the whole time had been involuntary. The goal was to bring him to the cockpit, and dragging him by the hand proved to be an effective method of accomplishing that goal. After a few minutes, she forgot his hand was even there.

She liked the feeling of his hand in hers. And for once, she didn't mind.

The ship lifted, sending Leia stumbling a little for balance. As she dropped into the nearest empty seat, she caught Luke's eye. He was sitting in the chair next to her. And he was staring at her.

Leia mouthed, "What?"

Luke, embarrassed that he was caught staring, only shrugged. Leia decided she would ask him about it later.

Then a rapid onslaught of emotions hit her hard, and before she knew what she was doing, the princess flew up out of her chair and gripped the back of Han's seat.

"Set hyperspace coordinates!" she blurted out.

Han twisted his neck to give her an odd look.

"Sorry, _what_?"

"The coordinates! _Set the hyperspace coordinates_!"

Flustered, Han repeated Leia's order to Chewie, who obliged.

And an ominous black shuttle emerged from around the side of the Star Destroyer.

" _Go_!" Leia shrieked, frantically shaking Han's chair.

"Give it a minute, Princess—!" Han started. But when he glanced out the cockpit window, he caught sight of what had Leia so frightened. Soon, he was as frantic as she was.

"Chewie!" he yelled, not really knowing what else to say. Then he realized he'd never told his copilot what coordinates to actually set.

Han uttered a single curse word that made the twins' eyes go wide. He scrambled over to help Chewbacca, quickly telling Luke and Leia to sit tight. Unfortunately, sitting tight was the last thing Leia was going to do.

The shuttle approached slowly at first. The _Millennium Falcon_ was sitting still, barely outside the docking bay port entrance. With Han and Chewie occupied with entering in hyperspace coordinates, there was no one to defend the ship or pilot them away if things got serious.

The cold chill swept over her again, and a lump of solid dread settled in her stomach. She fought against it, but her mind was struggling to hold up the defenses. It was like something heavy was pushing against her skull, trying to force its way in; the pressure wasn't from something Leia could see, but it was giving her a headache.

Something had to be done before all was lost. Time was running out. Leia watched the shuttle get closer and closer—she heard Han's anxious voice shouting orders and telling the twins that he had everything under control.

Leia tried to make herself believe those words. Everything was under control. Control. Control.

 _Control_.

She had an idea.

Shooting a hasty glance at the coordinate-based chaos going on next to her, Leia moved out from behind Han's chair and got as close to the window as possible. She swallowed hard. There was determination in her eyes, but not courage. Leia had never done this sort of thing before. Her hands shook with anticipation and the knowledge of what she was about to attempt.

Luke watched his sister go up to the window, but she only stood there. He couldn't tell what she was feeling or thinking because they were still blocking their Force-signatures. Whenever they did that, it was like shutting off the connection they had with one another. It was weird to _not_ feel each other's presence all the time. And it was times like this that Luke _really_ wished he knew what Leia was thinking.

He could always do it the old-fashioned way and just ask her. That was definitely the simpler option. So why didn't Luke feel like going up to his own sister and asking what was going on?

His feet seemed to move on their own, and soon he was right next to Leia. He opened his mouth as if he was about to say something, but no words came out. Leia didn't even acknowledge him. She just stared out at the shuttle getting closer and closer with every passing second. Both her fists were clenched tightly.

Without even talking to her, Luke knew she was going through something intense right then. He could feel the Emperor's presence, but it wasn't really affecting him. There was an uneasy feeling in the back of his mind. Besides that, he felt normal. Well, he was terrified that the Emperor was going to find them, but he was trying to keep it hidden.

Luke looked down at Leia's tight fists. Maybe he couldn't fix everything, but he could help.

He reached for Leia's left hand, gently pried open the fist, and placed his hand in hers. Leia didn't acknowledge that either until Luke squeezed her hand. Then she tensed up a little bit and turned to look at him.

A different feeling went through Luke, and it was so strong that he almost pulled his hand away. His free hand went up to his head—he was getting a bucket of emotions and feelings and thoughts dumped straight into his mind, which was not something he was prepared for. At first, he couldn't catch any of them long enough to make sense of anything. It was just a wave of nonsense that filled all the space in his mind and competed for his awareness.

Leia must have felt something too, because her hand tightened around Luke's, and her eyebrows raised the slightest bit.

"I guess we can't block each other after all," Leia said suddenly, a hesitant smile curving up one side of her face.

So _that's_ what those feelings were. They were _Leia's_ thoughts and emotions. Right after he'd taken her hand. . .

Apparently touching each other worked just as well when their Force-signatures were hidden. And now that they had their connection back, Luke knew exactly what Leia planned to do. His heartbeat quickened just _thinking_ about it. He knew she couldn't accomplish something like that; she was getting stronger with the Force all the time, but this was _huge._

She couldn't do it alone. And she knew it.

Leia looked at her brother again, her eyes questioning him. He nodded. She couldn't do it alone, but maybe together they had a chance.

Therefore, in one fluid motion, the twins each held up their free hand and called on the Force. They gripped each other's hands tighter than ever before.

Leia found herself in the dark, silent place again. An emptiness so peaceful and pleasant that she almost didn't remember what she was there for. But she could still feel Luke's hand in hers, and that kept her tethered to reality and the grueling task that lay ahead. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. . .slowly. The Force surrounded her, pulsing, resonating, stirring, thriving. She felt it. It felt her. They were one.

But there was something else. She felt Luke, too. Where their hands were clasped, the princess could feel a new kind of warmth. It fueled her and gave her strength. This strength was so raw and powerful and fulfilling. She knew deep inside her that the strength was coming from her connection with Luke. Could he feel it, too? Did he understand where it came from?

Actually, Luke _could_ feel it, and he _did_ know where it was coming from. But unlike Leia, that intense bond with the Force was completely new to him. He had never felt so close to Leia or the Force or the _universe_ , but if he said he didn't like it, he would've been lying.

There was a deep sense of fulfillment. Like they were connected and no longer two seperate people but each a _part_ of each other. He felt heat and cold and life and death and _everything._ It was overwhelming.

And along with the Light, it was only natural that the twins also felt the Dark.

Leia, who had grown somewhat accustomed to blocking the Dark Side out, had lowered those defenses in order to be fully connected to the Force. Now, she felt the weight of the Darkness press down on her, clawing away at her mind. It was trying to distract her, but she wouldn't let it. They couldn't afford to be distracted by _anything._

For Luke, it wasn't quite so easy to resist the Dark. But with some help from Leia's steadfast presence, he pushed through, vowing to mention this to her later.

 _Now._

That was Leia. She was telling him that it was to do it. Luke didn't know if he was ready, but he had to try.

From Han's perspective, the whole ordeal looked significantly different. As he finished figuring out what coordinates to set, the pilot found a spare second to see how the twins were doing. But when he turned to look at them, they weren't in their seats. They were standing at the front of the cockpit, hands clasped and arms outstretched.

Han wanted to tell them that they needed to sit down. That Chewie would set the coordinates in no time. That they looked like crazy people holding their hands out for no reason.

But Han knew there _was_ a reason. He didn't understand the "Force" or all that stuff Kenobi was always droning on about. Heck, Han wasn't even sure he believed it existed at all. Yet, there was a nagging feeling that the twins were doing something important, and he didn't have the will to stop them.

Then, he looked out the window.

The shuttle wasn't moving.

 _What the—_

The Emperor didn't stop, did he? Was he going to open fire? Should Han be worried?

He looked back and forth from the shuttle to the twins. Luke and Leia looked distressed. Their faces were contorted into rather concerning grimaces, and upon taking a closer look, Han noticed their arms shaking from the strain of something he couldn't see.

"What. . ."

Then it clicked.

"They're holding it back," Han whispered. His eyes widened and his mouth hung open, until he finally understood. And in that moment, the Force seemed very real.

"Han, _go_!" Leia blurted out suddenly, immediately lurching forward a step, as if speaking had loosened her hold on the shuttle.

"Oh. Oh, _right!_ " Han sprung into action, jumping into his seat and preparing to turn the _Falcon_ around.

"Are we ready?" Han asked.

Chewie roared an affirmation.

Han expertly pulled the ship back into a brief reverse before performing a sharp 180 degree turn. The _Falcon_ shot forward, eventually blinking away into the path of lightspeed.

 **A/N: And there you go. On to Coruscant, and then we finally wrap things up. The twins' birthday is comin' up, actually.**

 **Reviews are greatly appreciated! :)**


	58. Chapter 58: Almost But Not Quite

**A/N: Hallo! And welcome to another invigorating chapter of MLAL! :p**

 **Well, our friends are off to Coruscant. Not sure what else to say. . . XD**

 **ENJOY! And happy 4th of July, to those of you that celebrate it!**

As soon as the _Falcon_ lurched forward into the safety of hyperspace, the twins released their hold on the shuttle and stumbled backwards onto the floor. Han was immediately down with them, already exploding with questions.

"What was _that_?! Are you guys. . .are you alright? W-What just happened?"

Unlike Leia, Luke was present enough to reply. He chuckled lightly, sitting back on his hands.

"I think—I think we just made the Emperor _really_ mad."

Han shook his head in disbelief. "You got that right, kid."

He turned to Leia, who was still stretched out on her back. Her eyes were open, and she was blinking rapidly as if to bring herself back to reality.

"You okay, Your Worship?"

She turned her head to the side to look at Han. "Yeah. I think so."

Gingerly, the princess propped herself up on her elbows and let out an exhausted breath. She wanted to focus on Han and Luke and the massive victory (if that was even the right word) that they'd just won. She wanted to be as cheerful as her brother and laugh about their accomplishment. Maybe even celebrate. She wondered if she could find a way to get Han to hug her again.

But she couldn't do any of that, because she was otherwise occupied with holding back the Darkness from touching her. It called to her again, stronger than last time. Now it was ten times more alluring. More convincing. Leia cursed herself for letting her guard down again, but holding back the shuttle with Luke had required every ounce of concentration and energy that she had in her body. She hadn't even been thinking about pushing back the Darkness.

Now, though, Princess Leia was regretting it, even though she knew it was justified. Her abilities weren't quite strong enough to focus on two enormous tasks at once. It was one or the other, and giving Han time to set the coordinates was much more important.

 _The coordinates. . ._

"Where are we going?" Leia asked suddenly, a new flash a panic sparking up in her eyes.

Han blinked. "Coruscant. Is that. . .okay?"

The princess almost couldn't believe it. She hadn't told him to set coordinates for Coruscant, had she? No, she would've remembered that. So how did Han know? Just a lucky guess? Did _he_ want to go there for some reason?

Leia could only offer a distant laugh. "Yeah. Yeah, Coruscant is. . .it's great. That's great."

"Okay. . ."

She could tell that Han was confused, but she had too much on her mind to really dwell on it for very long. Instead of explaining anything, Leia pushed herself to a wobbly standing position and smiled shakily.

"I'm just gonna. . .relax for a while. You know, cool down. Call me if you need me," she said, making her way to the cockpit door. Hopefully she hadn't sounded too distraught—the last thing she wanted was to worry anyone. But even princesses needed a few minutes alone sometimes. Especially princesses that just rolled the first snowball that would inevitably grow into a series of catastrophic events.

Leia sighed, watching her feet as they clanged softly against the metallic floor. From the cockpit, Han's voice carried to Leia's ears.

"I don't know, pal. I understand her as much as you do."

She heard Luke laugh at that remark. Leia rolled her eyes, mostly in good humor, but there might have been a tinge of bitterness behind it, too. She wished she could be in there with them, joking and exchanging meaningless banter with Han. Probably giving Luke a good natured punch in the shoulder if he made any teasing comments.

Luke. She wasn't connected to Luke anymore, like she was when they were working together to stop the shuttle. Both of them were still blocking their Force-signatures, so Leia couldn't directly _feel_ her brother, but there was a vague trace of his presence. Apparently, due to their biological relationship or something else entirely, it was virtually impossible for them to totally block each other. Not that Leia had a problem with that.

She reached the main hold and shuffled over to the half-circle of a couch, plopping down with a sigh. Tiredly, Leia brought her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them tightly.

What exactly was she feeling? Sad? No. Not sad. If anything, she should be happy that they escaped with their lives. No more days spent on that Star Destroyer full of Imperials. No more constant worrying that there would be a stormtrooper over her shoulder every time she turned around. No, she wasn't exactly sad. Not angry, either.

Scared? Maybe. After all, they had just had a _very_ close call with the Emperor. Leia winced, remembering the lump of dread that had formed in her stomach, and the cold terror that surged through her body. It was a sheer miracle that they'd escaped at all. Luckily, there was no way that the Emperor piloted his own shuttle—he put himself on too high of a pedestal to do something like that for himself. If he _had_ been at the controls, the day would've had a different ending.

But now that they were gone, Leia didn't feel that raw fear anymore. Not really, anyway. There was still a lingering uneasiness that would probably stick around for a while, but that didn't compare to the feeling from before.

Maybe she was. . .confused? That one felt closer to correct, but not quite right. At least _partially_ right. She definitely was confused about a lot of things. For one, the success of her Jedi mind trick. And the fact that the _Devastator_ was stationed over Tatooine. And _how_ had Han known to head for Coruscant? Maybe she'd unconsciously put the thought in his mind. . .but could she even _do_ that? Was it ethical? Was it _possible_? Would Han have an answer for her if she asked him?

So, she was confused, for sure. But that wasn't all of it. What about. . .empty?

Empty was also semi-accurate. Now that she didn't feel Luke's empowering connection, the hole was back. The hole that she'd always felt back on Alderaan, before she even knew Luke existed. Unblocking her Force-signature was always an option, but she didn't feel safe enough to do so just yet. Maybe later.

Leia wondered what would happen when she undoubtedly went back to Alderaan. Would she feel twice as empty once Luke was so far away? Did their bond reach all the way across space, or no? Maybe that was why she never felt him before she'd come to Tatooine.

And, of course, there was the matter of the Dark Side. It was more tolerable now than it had been a few minutes ago, yet it still sat heavily on her mind. Leia squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block out the memory of Motti and what he'd said. . .and what she'd done after he said it. She wasn't a bad person, right? It was just one time. One intense moment of untamed anger. That didn't define her entire personality, though. Not by a long shot. Motti was just firing off hateful comments out of spite. So a lot of it probably wasn't even true.

. . .Right?

Leia tried to focus on the fact that _Anakin_ was her father. A Jedi. The hero. The good guy. Anakin was different from Vader. Vader was a Sith. The villain. The _bad_ guy. Definitely not the same person. Two completely different-in-every-way human beings. Only one of them was actually her father.

There was just one problem.

All of that was a lie.

As much as it pained Leia to admit it (which she would avoid doing verbally for as long as possible), Anakin and Vader were the same exact person. The personalities were different, and they definitely didn't look the same. But Vader had been Anakin once.

Vader was her—

He was her—

Leia bit her lip, angry with herself for _still_ being unable to admit it. Even after all this time, she wasn't ready? When would she be ready? Would she _ever_ be ready? It couldn't be healthy to harbor all that emotion and excruciating denial for this long. Bottling up feelings wasn't a beneficial practice, and if anyone should know that, it was Leia.

So why was she having such a hard time admitting this one simple thing? It would only take a second, and then it'd be over. A weight off her chest. Less anxiety to have in her life. That was a _good_ thing!

As Leia was fitfully condemning herself for being a pathetic weakling, Luke entered the room.

"Hey," he greeted carefully, sliding around the holochess table to sit next to her. "Everything okay?"

Leia avoided meeting his eyes, because she knew it was over once she did. Everything would come spilling out in one long tangent, fears and all, which was not how Leia wanted the day to go. She needed to play it cool. Act like everything was fine.

"Yeah, everything's _great_ ," she replied. Then Leia cringed. If the goal was to sound fine, she was _way_ off.

Luke leaned back on the curved seat, looking uncharacteristicly weary.

"Ha, sure. We just made ourselves a huge target for the Emperor. Of _course_ everything's great."

Now it was Leia's turn to be concerned.

"You okay? You seem kind of. . .gloomy." She uncurled her legs and sat up straight, nervously playing with a piece of her hair.

Luke raised his eyes heavenward. "Yeah. . .just kinda overwhelmed, I guess."

Huh. _Overwhelmed._ Finally, the exact word Leia had been looking for. She couldn't help but raise her eyebrows in appreciation at it.

"Me too," she said quietly.

"Hey, can I ask you a question? Or, I mean, a _few_ questions?"

The princess nodded, drawing her eyebrows together. He was probably going to ask about the main things Leia didn't really want to discuss at all, but she might as well satisfy his curiosity before it escalated any further.

"That thing with the stormtroopers. How did you do that?" Luke inquired, leaning forward in eager anticipation. At least he didn't sound upset about it—Leia herself was having second thoughts about how morally sound a mind trick actually was.

But how exactly was a person supposed to explain it? Jedi things were annoyingly complicated, as Leia was beginning to find out.

"Uh, I'm. . .not really sure. It wasn't the plan at all. It just kinda. . . _happened._ "

The blank look on Luke's face told Leia that her explanation was less than satisfactory. She sighed.

"Look, I don't know. My mind just calmed down and I was able to kind of. . . _touch_ the minds of the stormtroopers? Almost like I connected to them or something. And then all of a sudden, I could tell them what to do. It was crazy."

"Wow," Luke muttered. "Wish I could do that."

"You _can_. I'd never even practiced before. You can do the same things I can, you just. . .would need to try it, I guess."

Luke considered those words for a moment, letting them roll around in his head. Something else resurfaced then, and he turned slowly to Leia, considering his next words very carefully.

"So, you feel that all the time?" he asked.

Leia frowned. "Feel what?"

"That. . .dark stuff? Is it the Dark Side? Do you feel that, too?" He had experienced it briefly as their combined efforts stopped the shuttle.

All of Leia's muscles went tense. Her heart couldn't decide if it wanted to beat a million times faster or just stop beating altogether.

Luke. . .knew?

 _Play dumb. Don't dump this on him unless you absolutely have to._

But Leia couldn't lie to him. Not to Luke. He looked so genuinely worried right now, and maybe even a little scared of what her answer would be. His eyes were pinched around the corners, eyebrows knitted the slightest bit, probably only perceptible to Leia. Luke was more concerned than he was letting on. And they were twins. She at least owed him the truth.

Leia bowed her head, giving herself an extra second to prepare for the oncoming conversation.

"Yeah. All the time." It was barely above a whisper.

If Luke was concerned before, now he looked straight up _afraid._

"What?" he said slowly. "You—you deal with that every day? Since _when_?"

Leia inhaled deeply and let out the breath, resting her elbows on the game table. She didn't have enough courage to look Luke directly in the eyes as she told him. And the princess knew that this topic would eventually transition into another, and then they'd reach the conversation that Leia _really_ wanted to avoid. She couldn't let it come to that.

So, she started from the beginning. Leia told her brother everything, from the encounter with Ben Kenobi to the dark feeling that now sat in her stomach every day. She told the story of what happened with Motti and how she was afraid that she'd unlocked a very dark part of herself. . .or perhaps just let something dark _in._

And now it was like a part of her, hidden under several layers of mental blockades, but always _there._ She tried her best to ignore it. To put her focus on other things. But no matter what she did or how hard she tried, Leia could never get rid of the Darkness for good.

She was scared. _So_ scared. Ben had fervently warned her to never let her guard down when it came to the Dark Side. To _never_ let it touch her. To never _ever_ let it _attach itself_ to her. Because once the Darkness was inside her, it wouldn't be easy to get it out.

Just a single, basic task. All she had to do was follow instructions. And now, she'd failed that, too.

When Leia was done with her story, she was very close to tears, though she did her best to disguise it as excessive tiredness. Luke sat next to her for a moment, silent. He never took his eyes off of her. The princess waited patiently for some sort of reaction—a jaw-drop, another comment, a question, _something._

At length, Luke swallowed and said, "Wow."

"'Wow'? What does _that_ mean?" asked Leia desperately.

Luke's blue eyes darkened as he looked down at his lap. "I. . .I had no idea. Why didn't you tell me?"

Leia's heart nearly broke at how hurt he sounded. This time, there was no solid excuse. She _could've_ told him long ago. Instead of just being open and honest from the start, she'd taken everything and brushed it under the rug.

 _Stupid rug._

"I should've said something," Leia admitted, her voice unsteady. "I never thought it would get this bad. But that didn't give me an excuse to hide it from you. I'm. . .sorry."

An apology from Leia was rare indeed, and Luke appreciated it. However, there was still something that seemed off. From his vantage point, Luke studied his sister's expression. Of course, with the disadvantage of not being able to connect to her entirely, he couldn't pinpoint what was wrong. There was just a _feeling._

"It's okay," Luke finally replied. "Um. . .is there anything _else_ you wanted to tell me? Anything at all?"

He knew Leia was hiding something. If she moved on and said "no", Luke would continue to respect that privacy—Leia had a sort of stubborness that often made her feel as though she had to deal with things on her own. But if there _was_ a way she would reveal what else was going on, he wouldn't object to it.

Leia's breath caught at his words, only for the barest of seconds. She knew Luke had caught on to some emotion of hers, and it was clear he wanted to help. But the thing on Leia's mind wasn't something she wanted to communicate to her brother. At all. In fact, it made her want to stand up where she was and let a rift in the universe swallow her whole.

But.

She'd known this conversation was coming. It was only a matter of time until she couldn't keep the secret any longer. Leia just hadn't expected it to come so _soon._ She wasn't ready. Dang it, _neither_ of them were ready! Why did it have to be _today_ —?

"Leia?" Luke prompted, leaning around to see her better.

This was going to be the most difficult conversation of Leia's entire life. She fidgeted uneasily, taking several much-needed deep breaths. A glance at Luke told her he was watching her intently, probably wondering what the heck she was doing and if she was deaf.

But she wasn't ready. How could she do such a terrible thing to her own brother? Her _twin brother_. Luke, who was such an innocent, caring, _happy_ person. How was she supposed to reveal such an awful secret (she didn't have concrete proof of it, but that didn't matter because she already felt that it was true)? It just wasn't fair. Not fair that it had to be _them._

Why couldn't Vader be someone _else's_ —

And there it was again. Denial. The indestructible wall that stood between her and admitting the truth. How could she admit it to Luke if she couldn't even accept it _herself_?

But he wanted to know. He needed to know. Luke _deserved_ to know. Yet. . .once he knew, it wasn't going to be only Leia's burden. Luke would carry that burden, too, everywhere he went. Every day after this.

 _Oh my stars. . .what if he doesn't even believe me?!_

Nope. That's it. It was time. She'd bottled up the truth so long that it was going to pop out one way or another, and she'd prefer that Luke heard it from her first. If he didn't believe her and laughed in her face, whatever. If he _did_ believe her. . .well. They'd have to go from there.

At long last, Leia met Luke's wide eyes and said, "It's about Vader." Her heartbeat quickened dramatically, and she could feel her own pulse hammering inside her body. This was it. The moment. Everything would be different once Luke knew.

"What _about_ Vader?" Luke asked cautiously, raising a worried eyebrow. Leia's tone carried seriousness that demanded to be acknowledged.

Leia faltered. "Uh—it's a long story—um, well, back—a while ago, I mean—what Vader said about—about Padmé, and I—I got this. . .this—well, it's really only a theory but—I _feel_ the truth behind it—a-and you deserve to know—I. . .I think. . ."

She trailed off, discouraged tears threatening to fall. This wasn't working. She was rambling, too frightened to actually get to the point and _say it._ Where was the unwavering confidence when you needed it?

Luke sensed Leia's distraught mood. "Leia. . ." He reached out a hand to her shoulder.

For the brief moment that the twins made contact, the floodgates of Leia's emotional core opened straight into Luke's. The princess jerked away, startled, when she realized what just happened. Did Luke just feel everything Leia felt? Because that would either make things way easier or _way_ harder.

"You're scared? Of what?" inquired Luke, frowning slightly.

She was scared of telling him and what he might think. She was scared of the Darkness that threatened to turn her into a monster like Vader. She was scared of that terrible "theory" that had taken root in her heart and grown into a looming fear that she might actually be _right._ She was scared of _everything_ , but was there an easy way to say that?

Nope.

"You're not scared of _Vader_ , are you?" Luke said when Leia remained silent. "Because I don't think he hates us. I don't think we're his enemies, either."

Leia held back the tears with every bit of willpower left in her. "The problem isn't that we're his _enemies_. It's that—that we're his—"

"His what?"

"His—" Leia fought to get the word out. The final word that would change their lives forever. Once she admitted it, there was no turning back. They'd have to live with it forever.

Despite her best efforts, a rebellious tear got loose and ran down her cheek. She scrubbed it away surreptitiously, hoping to the dieties above that Luke hadn't seen it.

He had.

"Leia, what's _wrong_?" he asked again, growing more concerned by the second. He felt helpless in this situation, able to do nothing except continue to coax an answer out of his sister.

Leia sighed, attempting to reign in her emotions before things got out of hand. This was the perfect time. It was just the two of them, in a casual setting, with nothing better to do than talk to each other. If she didn't tell him now, would she ever?

Now or never, Leia told herself firmly. It was time to face her stupid fear and get this over with, once and for all. She could do it. Luke could handle it. They were strong.

Finally utilizing her last reserves of courage, Leia straightened herself and looked her brother directly in the eyes. He nodded at her reassuringly.

"Luke. . .we're Vader's—"

The whole ship lurched forward violently, sending the twins tumbling across the couch. A grinding sound resonated throughout the ship, and Chewie's roar carried down the hall.

"That doesn't sound good," Luke said, righting himself on the seat.

Leia bit her tongue in frustration. She had been _so close_! Just one more second and she'd have finally admitted everything, and now it was postponed yet again. And on top of that, something was definitely wrong with the ship, too.

 _Excellent. Just excellent._

But there was nothing that could be done now. She'd just have to wait. _Again._

"What were you gonna say?" Luke asked, remembering what had happened before the interruption.

"Nothing. Never mind. It can wait."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Leia said with a small smile. "I'm sure. We should check on Han, anyway."

There was still a suspicious variation of noises coming from below the ship, and knowing the 'reliability' of the _Falcon_ , it couldn't mean anything good. Both twins hopped off their perch and hightailed it to the cockpit, calling Han's name all the way. When they found him at the front of the ship, he was bent over the controls, looking irritated.

Leia's eyes flicked to the cockpit window, and she groaned. No longer were they traveling swiftly through hyperspace; the outside was just the normal expanse of dark space and stars.

"What now?" Leia directed at Han, hand on her hip.

He moved around her to reach a control panel on the other side.

"Minor malfunction in the hyperdrive," Han said offhandedly, too busy pounding the controls to pay Leia any attention.

"How minor?" Luke chimed in, knowing as well as Leia that it wasn't minor at all. They had dropped right out of lightspeed—clearly it was more severe than a "minor malfunction".

"Should we land somewhere so a professional can fix it?" asked Leia. If this little incident was going to delay their arrival in Coruscant, they needed to sort out the issue as soon as possible.

"I _am_ a professional," Han replied hotly.

"I mean a more _professional_ professional."

Han rolled his eyes. "We just left Tatooine, the closest decent maintenance station is lightyears away. We'll just have to keep going like this, unless Chewie or I can fix this thing."

That was not reassuring at all.

"How long will it take to get to Coruscant this way?"

Han looked up, mentally calculating. "Uh. . .Coruscant is a core world. Tatooine is the planet farthest away from the core worlds. We're talkin'. . .close to two weeks, if we're lucky."

For a moment, Leia could only stare, attempting to wrap her head around that. Two weeks. _Two weeks_ aboard the _Millennium Falcon_. Fourteen whole days to be driven absolutely crazy by restlessness and probably also Han, however that came into play.

She'd have to wait two weeks before she finally found Vader again. You see, Leia had managed to formulate a fairly decent plan over the past few days. Not entirely foolproof, obviously, but it seemed like it would work.

What with all the mayhem of being on Vader's ship and speaking to Imperials and searching for answers about Anakin Skywalker. . .well, she had a rough time keeping track of all the theories and conclusions. And to be frank, Leia was sick of it. The speculating, the stress, the constant weight of the unknown on her shoulders. It was maddening. She was _thirteen_ , for crying out loud. Way too young to deal with all of that, in her opinion.

Ben Kenobi had told her something else during their recent internal discussion. He said Leia lacked "closure". At the time, she had been stubborn and refused to acknowledge this _closure_ that Kenobi said she needed. But really, it put things into perspective. She already knew what she needed to know about Anakin. Maybe she'd require another billion years to actually _admit_ it, but the necessary evidence was all there.

She had nothing left to discover. So, in that case, Leia knew she ought to just go home. All she had to do was say the word, and Han would drop her off on Alderaan. And as much as she missed her family on her home planet, Leia didn't want to leave her _new_ family. As dysfunctional (and somewhat obnoxious) as they could be sometimes, Han and Luke—even Chewebacca!—occupied a special place in her heart. With them, she belonged. With them, Leia felt more at home than she ever had on Alderaan.

Maybe that was selfish. Bail and Breha had put in so much effort and _love_ in order to raise her. And Leia was _so_ grateful. She fully planned on returning to them, but first, she needed closure. Going to Coruscant would satisfy that need, even if it just meant seeing Vader one more time. A single, final moment to wrap everything up in a not-so-cute little bow.

Closure with Luke and Han would be a different story. But none of that mattered now, because the whole shazam was delayed fourteen days. Just _great._

Finally, Leia sighed, "Perfect."

Han scowled. "C'mon, Princess, it's not _that_ bad."

"Actually, it is."

"What, can't handle two more weeks of my irresistible company?" Han teased, flashing that annoyingly charming grin of his.

"You have _no_ idea," Leia deadpanned.

 **~•~**

 **Luke's Log**  
 **Day 3 - Minor Setback**

 _10:13 AM_

 _Hey. Me again, using Leia's datapad to cure boredom. She's currently in the cockpit, yelling at Han for not being able to fix the hyperdrive and not being a half-decent pilot and basically everything else in the universe._

 _Because guess what! We're traveling slowly through space, on our way to Coruscant, with zero lightspeed. The hyperdrive broke about twenty minutes ago, so now we have to travel to basically the other end of the galaxy without it. It's gonna take two weeks. And Leia is not happy._

 _I mean, I guess I'm kind of glad we get to spend some more time together before Leia leaves. I can tell she's homesick. She also really wants to go to Coruscant for some reason. That's where Vader is, so it probably has something to do with him._

 _Speaking of Vader, Leia was talking about him earlier. She was acting weird, and I wanted to know what was wrong, and she ended up telling this huge story about how she accidentally let the Dark Side in. . . ? Not to sound insensitive or anything, but I'm kind of mad she never told me. I guess I can see why, though._

 _And Leia was about to say something about Vader. She kept saying, "We're his—" but never finished. The ship dropped out of lightspeed right before she could get the last word(s?) out. But she said it could wait, so. . .it can't be_ ** _that_** _important, right?_

 _I don't know. All I know is that this is gonna be a loooooong two weeks. A princess from Alderaan who totally has a thing for Han. A farm boy from Tatooine who is already bored out of his mind. A Wookiee that roars all the time and has minor anger issues. And a cocky pilot who totally has a thing for Leia. All sitting on a creaking hulk of a ship, headed for the galaxy's core world. For two weeks._

 _WHAT COULD GO WRONG?!_

 _-Luke_

 **A/N: Well, that's that. I had fun writing this one, and I'm actually kinda proud of it XD Reviews are greatly appreciated (I'm talkin' to you, ghost readers, hehe. Just kidding)!**

 **OH! Guess what! All chapters of this story are now edited and revised (probably not perfectly, but I tried) on Wattpad! The goal is to get the revised versions onto FFN as well—I'm working on that :) So feel free to enjoy a less cringey version of this story, now that I went back and fixed everything XD**

 **Hope you guys have an awesome day! If you celebrate the Fourth, I hope you enjoy a nice stereotypical cookout and some fireworks! Or the pizza and Netflix, if that's more your thing :p**

 **-Lia**


	59. Chapter 59: Stupid Feelings

**A/N: Ha HAAA, I did it! Got this bad boy online within a week! For your reading pleasure! :p**

 **SeanHicks4: Hey there! I mean, the flight time is kind of explained in this chapter. Plus, Luke was exaggerating with the "other side of the galaxy" thing. The Star Wars universe is kinda like a dartboard. Tatooine is on the outermost ring, and Coruscant is in the middle. Not impossibly far away. In ESB, it took Han and Leia approximately 40 days to get from Hoth to Bespin, so I'm not unaware of sublight traveling speeds. And yeah, this story is a little long. I know. But hey, if you don't like it, you don't gotta read it, bruh :P**

 **Enjoy, guys! This one is a bit longer, so grab a snack, haha! (Kidding.) Also! Typos. I don't have time to triple proofread this, so sorry for any mistakes :p**

 **Luke's Log**  
 **Day 4 - Longest Trip EVER**

 _9:40 AM_

 _It's been one day since we began our lonesome journey through deep space. Morale is waning. Resources depleted. Strength running dangerously low._

 _Just kidding. That's kinda what it feels like, though. Leia and Han are doing. . .fine, I guess. They've managed to argue about pretty much everything in existence so far, which is slightly annoying, but they might as well get it out of their system. We still have 13 days left of this flight, and I don't think I could handle those two flirting that long._

 _That's what they're doing, by the way. Flirting. If you asked them about it, they'd just yell at you and deny it, but I know better. I bet they_ ** _know_** _they're flirting, too. Wouldn't it be easier for them to just confess their undying love to each other and kiss or something? Or do people not do that? I don't know. I'm definitely not one to talk about romance. I don't exactly have any experience in that particular area._

 _But still. It's awkward to watch. A tiiiiny bit amusing, but mostly awkward. Nothing else has happened recently, though. Just endless space and an increasing desire to be absolutely anywhere but this ship. It's bad enough having to stay on Tatooine all the time, but a ship? For two weeks? This is insane! I'm gonna lose my mind!_

 _10:16 AM_

 _Ate some food Han cooked (yeah, he can cook) and then spent an hour questioning my life choices on the couch. Every minute feels like sixty years. Han says I'm exaggerating, but I don't care._

 _1:35 PM_

 _Leia and I tried to play holochess for a while, but neither of us are any good at it. And once Chewbacca heard us playing, he wanted to join in, so we just gave up altogether and let him win (not that he had to try that hard). According to Han, it's always best to just let the Wookiee win. Not sure why. Must have something to do with the anger issues._

 _I've had some time to think lately (PLENTY of time), so I've been trying to figure some things out. And one thing that keeps coming to mind is this: how were we stationed above Tatooine in the Star Destroyer? I mean, when Leia and I were in that shuttle, I feel like we were flying for a while. Definitely more than a day. And it only took Han, like, 10 minutes to get to us. That doesn't add up._

 _Vader could've had the ship moved, of course. That's probably what happened. But_ ** _why_** _? It doesn't make sense! I know he's strong with the Force and all that, so I've been wondering. . .is it possible that he anticipated the whole thing and flew above Tatooine so Han could get to us faster? Maybe. I should probably ask Leia about it. She might know more than I do._

 ** _~•~_**

Leia sighed, fuming at her own inability to understand _anything._ All of yesterday and most of today so far, she'd been wrestling with the greatest and most dangerous enemy to ever plague her existence:

Feelings.

Specifically, feelings about a boy. About _Han._ Leia cringed, remembering that she'd run away in the first place because she didn't _want_ to think about boys. Love? Yeah, that wasn't a concept she particularly enjoyed thinking about. Even now, as her heart turned cartwheels in her ribcage, Leia wanted to kick herself. Or maybe she wanted to kick Han. She definitely wanted to kick _something._

Leia supposed it wasn't Han's fault. Not really, anyway. He couldn't help that he was clever, and handsome, and—

No, this wasn't helping at _all._ Frowning, Leia tried to focus on Han's less endearing qualities. His arrogance, excessive sarcasm, and obstinacy. The way he teased the life out of her and then smiled when she retaliated. She couldn't mess with his head the way he messed with hers; nothing ever seemed to work. He was invincible to the fiery darts of Leia's own wit.

What was there to like about him, really? Like, _honestly_ , was there anything? Besides his very few traits that Leia actually enjoyed, Han was just a cocky guy who took pleasure in seeing her upset. Nothing more. No other traits to like. _Zero._

Out of the corner of her eye, Leia snuck a quick glance at Han. Maybe she ought to initiate some kind of conversation. After all, it didn't look like Han was especially busy. The ship controls must be on autopilot, because he was lounging back in the pilot's chair, arms crossed behind his head. He looked as lost in thought as Leia was.

"So. . ." Leia started, looking down at her feet. She trailed off for no particular reason other than nervousness. Han turned to look at her.

"What?"

"Two weeks? Are you _sure_ —?"

Han sighed heavily. "Look, Princess. You want me to spell it out for ya? We'd already been traveling through lightspeed for some time before the hyperdrive malfunctioned. And if we can get the hyperdrive fixed sometime soon, which is the _plan_ , it'll take a lotta time off our trip. Two weeks is if we get it fixed. It's the _optimistic_ bet."

". . .Oh."

In all honesty, Leia had not expected such a thorough answer, and she supposed it made sense.

"Why didn't you mention the estimated time was relying on if you fixed the hyperdrive?" she asked, swinging her legs back and forth in her seat.

"Because it's not likely. If I _don't_ fix it, this little _adventure_ of ours is gonna take a whole lot longer."

Leia's eyes widened at the thought of the trip taking any longer than it already would. She'd barely survived a full day so far, and the romantic feelings were already on her doorstep. Was there anything she could do to surpress the rising tidal wave of emotions before it knocked her over? She'd never had a crush before! Things were bound to get out of control soon.

Leia swallowed, hoping the feelings would go away if she concentrated hard enough. Things always went away if you ignored them long enough—servants, siblings, parents, you name it. Something told her that feelings would be the exception.

"Something on your mind?" Han asked suddenly.

Leia jolted at the words, eyes widening further in dismay. Now that he'd asked a question, she _had_ to keep the conversation going; it'd be rude not to. Plus, there _was_ something on her mind, so maybe talking to Han would help. Or maybe not. One never knew how conversing with Han would go.

"Yeah, I guess so," Leia answered slowly.

"Yeah? What is it?"

The princess thought about it for a brief moment. There were multiple things she could choose from, but some probably weren't suitable for a casual conversation with Han, of all people. That left a small handful of topics that Leia could mention. One in particular seemed eager to be brought up.

"It's almost time for me to go home," she said, just a touch sadly. Feeling Han's eyes on her, Leia looked up to meet them.

The young pilot squinted at her, clearly trying to determine whether she was serious or not. Every other time he'd talked about her going home, Leia had instantly shot him down, insisting she didn't miss Alderaan that much. So what made her want to discuss it all of a sudden? Maybe he could find out.

He went for the subtle approach.

"It's about time," Han teased, grinning sardonically.

"Ha, ha, hilarious," Leia said. She returned her gaze to the expanse of space outside. "I'm gonna miss you guys."

Well. Han hadn't been expecting that. Unsure of how to proceed, he blinked, momentarily at a loss. Usually, when he poked fun at Leia, she bounced right back with a smart comment of her own, but this time she'd absorbed the remark instead of letting it ricochet onto Han. This was worse than he'd thought.

"Yeah. . .it's gonna be quiet around here without you to argue with."

His reward was a small smile from Leia, but it faded as soon as it had appeared.

 _Okay_ , Han thought, _there's always Plan B._

"Hey, look," he started, almost immediately regretting what he was about to say. "If there's really something bothering you. . .you can, you know. . .tell me. If you want."

Leia didn't reply, but she almost smiled at how cute he sounded. At least he was _trying_ to be helpful, which was more than she could usually say about Han. It just felt _off_ , being open with him like that. On a normal day, their relationship consisted of throwing meaningless insults at each other and seeing who stormed away first. Not sitting down next to each other for a discussion about _feelings._

Stupid feelings. Stupid stupid stupid—

"Never mind," Han said, turning away. "Why did I even—"

Leia interjected. "No! I—sorry, I just. . .sorry. There's just a lot on my mind. You know. . .about leaving."

Subdued, Han scuffed the toe of his boot against the floor. "Yeah, well. It has to happen sometime, right? That's just life."

"I know, I just wish. . ."

"Wish what?"

Leia wished a lot of things, really. But again, most of them were things that she wasn't ready to tell Han about. She wished she'd never discovered that awful truth about Vader. She wished Luke hadn't been separated from her so long ago. Most of all. . .

"I wish this was my life," she sighed.

"What do you mean? This _is_ your life."

"No, I mean _this_." Leia swung her arm in a circle, glancing around fondly at the cockpit. "This ship. You and Chewie and Luke. Just us, traveling the galaxy, without any responsibilities. I wish _this_ was my life."

Han blinked, stunned. This was the second time today that the princess had caught him off guard. How often did she express her thoughts so openly to him? _Never_ , that's how often. It was indeed a surprise. Not an unwelcome one, though. That was progress in itself.

He wanted so desperately to agree with her. To say, "It could be," and offer her the option of _not_ going home. He wouldn't mind. Maybe they wouldn't have to drop Luke off, either. They could all stay together, flying around on the _Falcon_ for as long as they wanted. Just like Leia said—no responsibilities. It could work.

But Han was no fool. Despite how much they all wanted to deny it, they _did_ have responsibilities. Commitments. Duties to fulfill elsewhere. Take Luke, for example, who had a commitment to his aunt and uncle on Tatooine. He had to help them run the moisture farm. Luke was probably the only family they had left; he was probably like a son to them. Han couldn't actively take that away from them and feel good about it. Not a chance.

And Leia, who probably had the most important commitment of all: becoming Queen of Alderaan. Sometimes Han had a rough time imagining _Leia_ in a throne, the head of an entire planet. Yet, there were other times that he could see her doing nothing else. It was in her blood—she was a natural born leader, adopted or not. Leia might fight tooth and nail to avoid ascending to the throne, but Han knew a small part of her secretly wanted it.

The people of Alderaan were counting on their princess to lead them one day. Han didn't have the heart to deny them that. Not in the least.

Luke and Leia were both unhappy in their seperate lives. Han could see that, and it made him feel a very interesting emotion: empathy. Out of all the people in the galaxy, Han definitely knew what it felt like to be trapped inside your own life. To go through the same motions every day, feeling like you were fighting your way through a jungle just to stay alive. To spend hours upon hours staring out at the sky, wanting nothing more than to be up in it.

The three of them had at least that much in common.

Han only sighed. "It can be your life for at least a couple weeks. But Alderaan—"

"Alderaan needs me, I know," Leia finished, sounding deflated. "What if I'm not ready to go back?"

"Why wouldn't you be ready? Still looking for answers?"

"Um. . .not exactly."

"Well, in that case, I think you're ready. You just need time to let everything catch up with you. It's been a hard month."

Leia's head jerked up sharply. "It's been a _month_?"

"Just about, yeah. Are you fourteen yet?"

She paused to think. What with life's general chaos and being in space for so long, Leia wasn't sure what day it was. But a jarring memory wormed its way into her head, and she remembered.

"Empire Day. . ."

Han titled his head, confusion obvious on his face. "Come again?"

"Empire Day!" Leia was getting excited now. "I was born on Empire Day! That's my birthday!"

"Thirteen days until the big Empire Day celebration on Coruscant. That's your birthday, huh? Unfortunate."

"No, it's _great_! Well, I mean, not _great_ , but—you know. But it's proof!" Leia was mostly talking to herself by that point, so she was shocked when Han actually replied.

"Proof of what?"

 _Whoops._

Leia had been connecting the dots, and a thought had come to her. Ever since she could remember, people had always said Leia's mother had died moments after giving birth. And if she was born on Empire Day, her mother passed away that _same day_. Vader would know that. . .right?

Probably. Leia wanted to find out for sure, though, because if Vader happened to admit that Padmé died on Empire Day. . .well, that would be the final confirmation. It was an exciting and also frightening idea.

But Han was still waiting for an answer.

"Um. . .nothing, never mind." Unconvincing, but it would have to do. Thankfully, Han let the subject drop. After that, the two of them settled back into comfortable silence, listening to the engine and occasional beeps from the control board. Leia curled up in her seat, fixing her eyes on the darkness outside. She looked forward to planting her feet on something that _wasn't_ the floor of a ship.

It was weird, sitting in the cockpit with Han, telling him about her thoughts. Her usual confidant was Luke, but he took off again with her datapad a while ago, and she hadn't seen him since. Because her brother was occupied, naturally Leia had wandered into the cockpit, hoping for some company. Han's company wasn't normally what she'd go for, but something was different lately.

Oh. The feelings.

Leia narrowed her eyes, realizing that her (stupid) feelings were finally exacting revenge for all that time she'd swept them under the ( _stupid_ ) rug. Somehow, they'd escaped, and now they were rampaging throughout her headspace, ten times worse than before. Mocking her. Throwing her silly crush back in her face. Leia had probably spent _hours_ trying to analyze her emotions concerning Han. At first, denial was her best friend, and she refused to acknowledge the feelings for what they were. But now. . .everything just seemed so painfully obvious.

In an annoying way, it was kind of funny how Leia had tried to fool herself. Tried to convince herself that she didn't have a crush. And she _believed_ it? All the proof was right in front of her face.

Just to prove it, Leia snuck a peek at Han. And she was right. The odd fluttery feeling was back in her stomach. He was exactly the same as he had been when she'd walked in—leaning back in the seat, arms crossed lazily behind his head, and eyes closed. One foot tapped out a random rhythm that apparently only Han could hear. His hair was tousled and messy, a few strands falling lower on his forehead. Just the same old Han. Nothing about him had changed since they'd met.

Maybe Han hadn't changed. But _Leia_ had. It was just proving to be a problem to actually define all those changes for what they were. She felt the need to remind herself that Han's annoying qualities should automatically remove any "romantic" feelings that lingered. But Leia couldn't fool herself forever. Han's "annoying" qualities were the ones she _liked._ Possibly because she saw those traits in herself, too.

Sarcasm? Check. Leia had an infinite supply of that.

Stubborness? Well, she didn't like to admit it, but Leia was definitely obstinate. She could barely convince _herself_ to do things, sometimes.

And arrogance? Oh. Leia didn't like that word, and she _really_ didn't appreciate the thought of applying it to herself. Her own personal preference was _overconfidence._ It sounded much better than _arrogance._ Ultimately the same things, though.

The two of them were alike. Maybe _that's_ why she liked Han so much. Because she could relate to him, and they shared certain traits that had been frowned upon by others. Plus, he was cute. Handsome, even. Leia admired his sharp jawline and tan skin. The way his hair stuck up in unruly waves, but somehow it didn't look _bad._ His worn shirt and vest, which he never seemed to swap out for anything else.

Princess Leia blinked, suddenly very aware of the heat rushing to her cheeks. The knowledge that she was blushing only made her blush _more_ , and Leia quickly averted her gaze, hoping Han didn't pick that moment to open his eyes.

No, the time for ignoring feelings was long gone. If Leia _had_ to have a (stupid) crush on Han. . .she might as well do something with it. Maybe she should try to be better friends? Compliment him? Let him know she actually _didn't_ hate every bone in his body? Was that how crushes worked?

She settled for, "Um, thanks."

Han's eyes opened sleepily. "For what?"

"Just—for listening." Leia played with her fingers, pretending to inspect her nails. "I, uh. . .it means a lot."

Even though she wasn't looking at him, Leia knew Han was smiling.

"Anytime, Your Worship."

 **~•~**

 **Luke's Log**  
 **Day 5 - Creative Entry Title**

 _6:13 AM_

 _It's this ungodly hour of the morning, and I can't sleep. I don't know why. Maybe all this space travel is getting to me. I mean, not that I'm not used to space travel by now, but what if it's getting to my head? There's a chance I'm just really overthinking everything, but I don't think that's it._

 _Han and Leia are still sound asleep. Leia and I get to use Han's bed, and he sleeps on the game table couch. Not because we told him to, though. It was his idea. He practically ordered us to take the bed. Which is a nice gesture, but this bed probably isn't much better than the couch. . .it sure isn't comfortable._

 _Leia is dreaming. I can feel it. We unblocked our Force-signatures yesterday, and it feels good to be connected to her again. Like someone finally plugged an outlet into the wall and now the electricity works. I dunno what she's dreaming about, but it's not bad, at least. It must be pretty good, because she's smiling in her sleep. I have my suspicions._

 _So. 12 days until freedom. Well, kind of. 12 days is too many days._

 _8:42 AM_

 _Han is awake, but Leia isn't. She's still passed out on the bed, sound asleep. I ate breakfast and tried talking to Han for a bit, but he's not easy to have a conversation with. I did ask him why we're going to Coruscant, and he said, "I need a part." That seems like a sketchy excuse to me, but then again, the hyperdrive is broken and Coruscamt has some pretty good stations. Or so I've heard._

 _Never been to Coruscant before. Never been on_ ** _any_** _other planet before. Should definitely be an experience. I am tired._

 _4:37 PM_

 _Leia and I have been passing the time by practicing with the Force. I feel like we're getting better at it; I still can't figure out how to meditate like Leia, though. She's trying to teach me, but I just don't see how she can sit there and completely shut down._

 _7:15 PM_

 _Han let me fly the ship for a little while, which I consider a milestone in whatever form of friendship we have. It was fun, and a good way to pass the time. I've never spent this much time doing_ ** _nothing._** _Leia doesn't seem all that happy either. She's just sitting on the floor, rolling something around._

Leia was, in fact, absently playing with the Imperial model of the space station. Her thoughts were focused primarily on it and what she was supposed to do with it. It was just another weight on her shoulders, constantly pining for her attention. Was she supposed to show her parents the model? Would they even be able to take any kind of action? And if they did, the Empire would trace it back to Alderaan and discover that her parents knew. That would lead to things Leia preferred not to think about.

She rolled the sphere across the floor, watching it bump into the game table and roll back to her. Luke was sitting on the couch, typing away on her datapad, doing who knows what. It was probably best that she didn't know, and it was admittedly better than him pestering her to practice meditation with him. At least he was occupied.

 _Everyone_ was occupied except her, or so it seemed. Chewbacca was in the cockpit, her brother was busy on the datapad, and Han had gone back to tinkering with the hyperdrive. That left her without anyone to talk to and nothing to do. Well, nothing but wallowing in self pity and blocking out thoughts about the future. None of which was good for one's mentality.

Leia considered finding Han. He might want some company while he perched in that mess of pipes and wires and general broken-hyperdrive-ness. Of course, that idea was probably just Leia's misfiring emotions, which she recognized. But still. She might as well admit _something_ , and so. . .she definitely had a crush on Han. A huge, obvious, _stupid_ crush on Han. Did she like it? No. But there didn't appear to be an easy way out of it, either.

Leia grabbed the model and stood up, whisking out of the main hold and down the hall. Following the clanging sounds, she navigated her way through the ship, eventually finding herself at the edge of a gaping hole in the floor. In the center of that hole was Han, legs hooked over a pipe, reaching one arm out to grab a tool. He couldn't quite reach, so Leia picked it up and placed it in his searching palm. Without realizing Leia had given it to him, Han retracted his arm and went back to work.

The princess only watched for a moment, leaning slightly over the edge to get a better look. After a short while, Han reached up again, trying to set the tool back on the floor. Leia pried it from his hand and set it down, handing him a different one. His arm disappeared.

A pause.

"Hey, what the—?"

Han's head poked out of the hole, and Leia laughed. He did a decent job of hiding his grin, but Leia caught the amused sparkle in his eyes. But looking at his eyes like that sent butterflies loose in her stomach again, so she adjusted her position on the floor, using it as an excuse to look away.

"What're you doing here?" Han asked, hoisting himself halfway out of the open space. He crossed his arms on the edge and raised an eyebrow, clearly a little suspicious. Leia didn't blame him—she was suspicious of her own motives, too.

"Nothing. Just thought I'd stop by to cure your loneliness."

"Me? Lonely? Whatever gave you that idea, Princess?"

Leia let her legs dangle over one side of the opening. "Well, you were talking to yourself."

"I wasn't—"

"Han. Luke and I could both hear you on the other side of the ship. You _were_."

Smiling hesitantly, Han shrugged. "Yeah, well. So what if I was? Helps me think. Can't exactly say I was _lonely_ , though. Why are you really here?"

Leia frowned, tracing circles on the floor with one finger. "Alright, maybe _I'm_ the one who's lonely. Everyone is busy except me. I needed something to do. And you looked. . .singular. So, here I am."

"Shoulda known you'd come looking for me. Couldn't resist, could you?" Han asked, smiling smugly. He looked at Leia, waiting for the inevitable remark. Waiting for her to snap back at him with an angry comment about how he was so full of himself, and to stop deluding himself into believing she actually _liked_ him—the very _idea_!

But Leia said nothing. Didn't react at _all._ She just kept tracing invisible patterns on the floor next to her. To Han, that was extremely concerning. She'd been undeniably different lately, always spacing out and lacking the general fire that he'd always admired in her. It was unlike Leia to act so put-out. Han wished he could get her to explain what was bothering her, but she was in such a vulnerable state; one wrong word and she might stomp away, thus ruining the whole thing. He'd have to be careful.

"Hey, are you alright?" Han inquired, as gently as he could manage without sounding stupid.

Leia couldn't quite decide on an expression, so she chose a scowl and her good friend—denial.

"Of course I'm alright! Why wouldn't I be alright? I'm _completely_ alright! I'm—" she cut off, realizing what she was doing. This was the easy way out, but it wasn't the truth. Leia was as far from "alright" as Tatooine was from Coruscant. There was simply too much on her mind, and the volcano of emotions was threatening to erupt at any moment. Avoiding that eruption was her main goal.

But in order to stop the emotion overflow from exploding inside her, she had to let those emotions _out._ And that was what she was afraid of.

However, Leia was out of options, and the setup was perfect. Just her and Han. She could do this, right? It probably seemed harder in her head.

"I'm. . . _not_ alright at all," she admitted sullenly, hanging her head. If she was going to be open with Han, she sure as heck wasn't going to meet his eyes at the same time.

Han smiled wanly, expecting as much. His concerned eyes roamed over Leia's slouched form, noticing how defeated she looked. She was already a petite person, but the whole depressed demeanor made her appear even smaller. Like she was retreating into herself, hoping she'd shrink until she was nonexistent. Han knew it had taken every ounce of courage in Leia's body for her to actually admit to being _not_ okay. Her pride was probably suffering more than she was. She might actually trust him. And he respected that.

"D'you wanna. . .you know, talk about it?"

"Not really." She wrapped her arms around herself.

Frowning, Han considered what to do next. On one hand, Leia was closing herself off more and more, and he could just say "okay" and end the conversation. But on the other hand. . .she looked so _lost_. Han didn't like it when Leia wasn't herself. And to be completely honest, he wasn't quite sure how he felt about her or _what_ he felt about her. . .but he was determined to find out.

But first. . .

Han brushed himself off and crawled right out of the pit, taking a seat next to Leia and letting his legs hang over the edge.

"Aw c'mon, Princess, don't be like that. What's wrong?"

Leia's gaze shifted to him for the barest of seconds. "Everything."

The shakiness of her voice set off warning alarms all throughout Han's body. Unsteady voice, downcast expression, looking away. If Han didn't know any better, he'd think she was about to—

Oh gosh—

Leia drew a shuddery breath. " _Everything_ is wrong! It wasn't supposed to go like this!"

She was progressing steadily into hysterical rambling, and that could only mean one thing—

"I never wanted any of this to happen! And I thought maybe if I ignored it, it wouldn't be true anymore, but that was stupid—and _I_ was stupid! But now I know that it's true, and there's no going back! It _kills_ me to know! But I had to pretend I was fine and that _everything_ was fine, because I had to be strong! For Luke! For _you_! But I _can't_ anymore, Han! I—I _can't_ —"

A rebellious tear rolled down one of her cheeks, and she rubbed it away quickly, even though more tears came right after. By now thoroughly overwhelmed, Han extended one hand to place on Leia's shoulder, but stopped at the last second. He didn't understand what she was even _talking_ about, but something had her rattled enough to cry in front of him—a phenomenon he never expected to witness.

She continued, ranting angrily through tears. "This is _all_ my fault! I never should've gone after information on my birth parents. But after I figured it out—I—I was too scared to admit it to myself! So I didn't, and I just kept hoping someone would prove me _wrong._ But no one ever did! And then that stupid General Motti said—"

"Wait, hold on," Han interjected. "General Motti? An Imperial?"

"Yeah—"

"What did he say?" Han was getting more upset by the second. It was obvious that Leia had been wrestling with something difficult for a good deal of time now. And if Motti had rubbed it in her face, Han would _personally_ fly back to the Star Destroyer and blast the idiot's head right off.

"He said—he said that I was exactly like my father! That I was evil! That—that I was a _monster_! A-And I couldn't take it anymore so I—I lost control and—I didn't _mean_ to, but he crashed into the wall and—the _Dark Side_ won't leave me _alone_! And now—what if he's right? What if I _am_ a monster?! J-Just like my father!"

Leia was almost openly crying now, doggedly scrubbing away the tears as fast as they came. Han was having trouble understanding the story Leia was telling, but he did know one thing—

"You're not a monster, Leia," he assured, staring fiercely at her until she looked him in the eyes.

Leia was taken aback by hearing Han say her name. Her _real_ name, not one of those obnoxious nicknames he always used. And she knew her long explanation really wasn't making much sense, especially considering Han didn't have the context of most of it. But the words just came spilling out, and the knowledge that they _needed_ to come out kept her from stopping. She was approaching the forbidden topic, and she didn't even care.

"I _am_ a monster! It's a part of me now and there's nothing I can do."

"Listen, I don't know why that guy would tell you any of that. But I know _you_ , and you're not a monster. Not even _close_."

"You don't _understand_ —!"

Han took Leia by the shoulders and spun her around to face him. His heart pounded loudly in his chest. Her eyes were red and watery from crying. The two of them stared silently at each other until Han spoke.

"Then make me."

Leia's eyes shed more distraught tears as she fought to keep eye contact. If she wasn't so upset, she would've been astonished at Han's bold move. She would've been distracted by the feeling of his hands on her shoulders. But instead, her resolve finally cracked and she broke down in involuntary sobs.

"I—I can't—I can't tell you! You—you'd hate me if you found out! My father—he's not the person I thought he was—and I should've told Luke—but I didn't! I'm so— _stupid_!" Leia squeezed her eyes shut, vaguely aware of Han holding onto her shoulders helplessly.

"Leia, I—"

"I can't do this anymore! I—I don't _want_ him to be my father! And I never told anyone—because no one would believe me—but I _hate_ this! He's ruining my entire _life_ —"

"Who?" Han asked, giving Leia the tiniest of shakes.

"Vader!" Leia was crying uncontrollably, no longer bothering to hide the tears. Her body shook with each sob. Because now she had another thing to cry about. She'd never wanted Han to know. And now—

She was about to tell him—

Once he knew, he would hate her—

She was so _afraid_ —

"How is Vader ruining your life?" Han asked calmly, trying to bring some sort of control to the situation.

There it was. Leia knew she was going to tell him. She would tell him and then he would hate her—maybe he'd even be _scared of her_ , and that thought made Leia's heart beat faster than ever, and she'd never imagined telling Han _any_ of this, let alone before she told _Luke—_

Oh gosh—

The world was spinning—

She could barely breathe—

But Han was still looking into her eyes, somehow tethering her to reality, and even though she was acting crazy and crying and making no sense, he still cared. He _cared_.

"Vader is—he's my—"

Everything was blurry—

"He's my—my—"

Leia prepared for the worst and closed her eyes again. She couldn't believe it. After all this time denying it, she was really about to say it out loud. For the first time. But this time around—

She felt ready.

Leia opened her eyes, and Han's heart nearly shattered at what he saw there. He saw fear. Sadness. Hurt. But most of all, he saw shame.

"Vader is your _what_?" he said, but it came out much quieter than he'd anticipated.

"My father," Leia said, and Han's heart broke even more at the way she said it. Like it was the worst thing in the galaxy that she was admitting. Like it crushed her spirit to say it. He didn't understand how it could be possible or how she had discovered it. But she wasn't faking.

"Hold me," Leia choked out.

And then she collapsed into sobs once again, falling into Han's arms and holding on, grabbing the back of his vest with both fists. Han was almost knocked back by the impact, and he didn't know how to react. He felt Leia sobbing and shaking against him, her head buried in his shoulder.

So he just wrapped his arms around her and held on, repeating "it's okay, you're okay" over and over, knowing it probably wasn't helping but unable to do anything else.

But she was holding on to him like he was the only solid thing in her universe. Maybe he actually was. It was like they were the only two people in existence, but he was too focused on just being there for her because she needed someone to tell her things would be okay.

And that's when Luke came rushing into the room.

 **A/N: So I threw everyone's thoughts and perspectives into a box, shook 'em up, and dumped 'em out into this chapter. And that's the result :p**

 **Hope you liked it! Drop me a review if you wanna! See ya next time!**


	60. Chapter 60: Much Conflicted Very Emotion

**A/N: Woo! Last weekly update for a bit, because I'll be on vacation for the next two weeks or so.**

 **HuffleHecate: Luke is very often the only one who has any sense :p he's practical, Leia isn't. They balance each other out XD and thanks!**

 **Enjoy! (Or don't, it's really up to you, I won't judge, bro.)**

Leia sensed her brother's presence getting nearer before he actually entered the room, but the current circumstances overrided her rationality and she was too overwhelmed to care that much. She was still trying to understand why she had just told Han the biggest secret she'd ever kept in her life. And then before she knew what she was doing, Leia was in Han's arms and he was hugging her—

He was talking to her, but she could barely hear a word he said—

There was so much happening, she didn't know what to feel—

She ended up feeling Luke's presence even stronger than before, except this time she paid attention. The hug with Han ended abruptly as Leia flung herself backwards, almost sending the two of them toppling into the hole full of pipes. The princess only caught a brief glimpse of the shock on Han's face as she fell back onto her hands, watching Luke as he stood a few feet away. Han, noticing that Leia was looking over his shoulder at something, whirled around.

"Am I. . . _interrupting_ something?" Luke asked, sounding more uncomfortable than angry.

Leia and Han reacted strongly, overlapping each other as they shook their heads and offered various objections and astonished expressions. Luke seemed to buy it, but he might not have been interested enough to pry any further. But he did take note of Leia's face, which was still streaked with the trails of tears.

"Then what's going on? I heard—Leia, are you okay. . . ?" Luke asked carefully, not wanting to anger her by saying he'd heard her crying.

Quickly scrubbing at her face with the sleeve of her tunic, Leia nodded.

"Yeah! Of course I'm okay. Everything's—everything's great."

Unconvinced, Luke turned to Han, hoping for a more truthful answer. But the pilot only stared, blinking wide eyes and giving Luke an extremely uncharacteristic look. A look of bewilderment.

"What?" Luke demanded.

"Nothing," Han said thickly, looking away.

Something was definitely wrong. What had those two been talking about before he'd interjected? And did they really think Luke was dumb enough to _not_ notice Leia's downcast expression and Han's sudden puzzlement? He knew something was up, but he just didn't know how to piece it all together into a logical conclusion. So, for a very long moment, Luke just stood there, glancing back and forth from Han to Leia. Neither of them said anything else.

"Am I missing something?" Luke pressed, throwing his arms out to the side. "Because it feels like I'm missing something."

"I think I'm gonna go lie down," Leia said suddenly, sounding drained. She pushed herself to her feet, giving Han one last grateful look, and headed down the hall, her tired footsteps echoing as she went.

Once Leia was out of earshot, Luke glared at Han, who was still sitting on the edge of the conspicuous hole in the floor. But Luke was thrown off by the foreign look Han was giving him. Eyebrows drawn together slightly and a nervous glint in his eyes, Han observed Luke in a way he never had before. The blond boy couldn't quite figure out what emotion Han was trying to communicate, but it wasn't a good one.

" _What_ were you guys just _talking_ about?" Luke exploded, finally fed up with being kept in the dark.

Han's frown deepened. "I. . .I think you'd better ask her yourself, kid." Then, shaking his head, he turned back to his tools and hopped into the repair pit once more. Luke was left standing there, wondering what the heck he'd just witnessed and why he felt so irritated by it. Gears in his brain turned, attempting to configure a solution to this new problem.

Talking to Leia about it was the most obvious choice, but for some reason, it didn't seem like it would be very beneficial. Besides, she might need some alone time after. . .after _whatever_ just occurred between her and Han. And it was clear that Han wasn't willing to explain anything.

So Luke was confined to the lonely box of speculation, which hardly ever resulted in an actual problem being solved. Dejectedly, he stomped back the way he came, wishing he didn't feel so helpless and confused.

Meanwhile, Leia had retreated to Han's quarters, where the twins had been sleeping throughout their journey. Instead of face planting onto the bed—or better yet, burying herself under the sheets for all of eternity—she headed straight for Han's closet, entered, and closed the door firmly behind her. There wasn't a lock, but she could live without that for now.

Luckily, her satchel was still slung over her shoulder and hadn't slipped off during that embarrassing display of immaturity—or whatever she'd eventually learn to call it. She lifted the bag over her head and set it to the side. A few persistent tears still welled up in her eyes, and Leia rubbed them away with both hands. How could she have been so _stupid_? Of all people to have a breakdown in front of, it just _had_ to be Han, didn't it? Han, the one person she always tried to impress with composure and strength. But _that_? That wasn't composure, and it _certainly_ didn't show strength.

It was weakness.

Leia hated having a weakness. Ever since she was a child, she detested crying. It made her feel like a wimp. She always tried to avoid crying in front of her parents at home, especially once she got a little older. It still happened every now and then, but not ever so uncontrolled as what she'd just done. That was. . .a scary experience, to say the least.

In a way, it almost felt _good._ At least it was off her chest now. But. She'd known the metaphorical volcano was going to erupt soon, so she started telling Han everything to dodge the explosion. To prevent it from happening in _front_ of anyone. And look what had happened anyway.

The heaviest weight Leia had ever carried was now officially off her shoulders—mostly, anyway. She'd probably never get her head around the fact that she _told someone._ She told _Han._ And it was every bit as terrifying as she'd expected it to be, multiplied by ten. As long as she lived, Leia would never forget the knot that tightened in her stomach, and the way her throat had dried up as she said the words. Like a period at the end of a sentence, the confession had an air of finality to it. As if saying it out loud somehow made it true. Made it _real_.

Leia squeezed her eyes closed, stopping another round of tears from spilling over. She thought of the look on Han's face, shocked and unbelieving. Like he knew Leia was telling the truth but didn't _want_ to believe her. Judging by his expression, one would think Han felt just as pained by the confession as she did. It was possible.

He hadn't looked angry, though. Or scared. Leia would always be grateful for that, if nothing else. She didn't understand _how_ he could believe her and not be upset, but that was fine. Perhaps she'd gather the courage to ask him sometime in the future.

There was a lot she didn't understand, actually. For example, why had she just fallen into Han's arms like that? Had she no shame? No dignity? No sense of personal _space_ , whatsoever? And Leia knew she had said something before that. . .what was it, again?

 _Oh._

 _Hold me._

Maybe that's why she collapsed into Han like that. Because she needed someone to hold her. Just for a moment, to feel like her entire universe wasn't falling apart right in front of her.

In retrospect, the whole ordeal was enough to make Leia's cheeks turn all different shades of red. But there was one thing that didn't embarrass her. Rather than shoving her away or objecting, Han just hugged her back. He knew what she needed, and he'd been there for her. No smart remarks, jokes, or even any questions. Just held her, because he wanted to help.

It was possible (not highly probable, mind you, but _possible_ ) that Han Solo _did_ have a heart, after all. And _maybe_ (only and strictly _maybe_ ), somewhere in that theoretical heart, there was a place for Leia.

And suddenly, Leia's cheeks felt much hotter.

 **~•~**

 **Still Day 5**  
 **What the Heck is Happening?!**

 _8:08 PM_

 _So. I waited a bit to write about this, because I couldn't think straight. To be honest, I still can't really form a coherent thought, but I might as well rant somewhere before I implode._

 _I was writing before, where I left off, when Leia was sitting on the floor. And then she just got up and left, which I didn't think was weird in any way. But then, ten minutes later, I heard something that sounded like crying—it was hard to tell, because it was coming from the back of the ship. I ignored it for a few minutes, figuring I was imagining things, but then I decided to go check it out. And what did I find? Han and Leia hugging, that's what. Leia was crying, Han was telling her it was gonna be okay, and then they jumped apart when they noticed me standing there._

 _And that's not even the worst part. The worst part is that no one will tell me_ ** _what's going on_** _! Han and Leia can hug for the rest of their lives for all I care. That's not the problem. What_ ** _bothers_** _me is the fact that Leia's upset about something and told Han first. And don't even start with, "Aw, Luke is jealous, that's so cute," NO. I'm just annoyed that everyone thinks they have to keep this a secret. So unnecessary._

 _Haven't seen Leia since then. Han is still tinkering with the hyperdrive. Chewbacca is hiding out in the cockpit, probably not without reason. And here I am, sitting by myself in the main hold. Wondering what they're not telling me and if I should be worried about it. I probably should._

 _Whatever. Maybe I'll ask Leia about it, before we go to bed. Unless she's still. . .you know. Highly combustible._

 _-Luke_

 ** _~•~_**

Leia sighed, fighting back the wave of exhaustion that threatened to knock her over. Sitting in the closet was proving to be an effective method for avoiding any other interaction, but besides that, there was no point. She was probably just too scared to leave and risk running into Han again. Or worse, Luke. Luke would most likely be upset with her and ask her to tell him what was wrong. . .which she had no problem doing on an average day. But this particular day wasn't average. She couldn't handle another emotional breakdown about her parentage.

If she left the closet, Leia was bound to run into someone. So, she stayed put, wishing the closet was equipped with some form of entertainment other than the mirror.

As her eyes scanned the small space for something— _anything_ —to do, they landed on the satchel, which was slouched against the wall. An idea came to her, then. One that seemed odd and foreign, and yet so achingly familiar that Leia grabbed her bag with every intention of carrying out that idea. Her fingers dug around in the satchel until she found it. Her most cherished possession. The thing that had kept her sane throughout years of suffocating royalty work and loneliness. Her journal.

It'd been a while since Leia had written in her journal; ever since she discovered it was her mother's, the book just didn't feel the same. Like it didn't belong to her, and she was invading someone's privacy by writing in it, even though Padmé's entries had all been removed. Plus, considering the general madness of her life lately, she'd known the journal would get pushed to the sidelines, so she just gave it up for a while. Luke had used it a few times since then, but she hadn't.

Leia pulled out her journal and set it on her lap. The worn cover was so inviting, urging her to open it and pick up her hobby again. She wanted to. Journaling always helped her spread out her thoughts in a visual way and usually made it easier to sort out a problem. And currently, Leia was dealing with several problems.

She pondered it for a second too long and eventually gave up on trying to find an excuse. Grabbing her pen and leaning back against the wall, Leia flipped to a clean page and let the words come.

 **Diary of Leia Organa**

 _It's been a while, to say the least. There's a lot I could say, but the recap would take longer than it did to actually live everything, so I'll spare you the details. I doubt I'll ever forget what happened and have to read my entry to remember. Stuff like this doesn't exactly leave your mind easily._

 _Well. . .the bottom line is this: my biological father is Anakin Skywalker. And through a series of unfortunate (but painfully necessary) events, it has come to my attention that Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader are the same person. Therefore. My biological father is Darth Vader._

 _No, you heard me correctly. And it feels oddly strengthening to admit it again. I say "again" because I accidentally revealed that information not too long ago—today, in fact. Well, okay, I guess it wasn't entirely unintentional, considering I didn't do anything to stop myself. But still. The intial plan wasn't for it to come out this way. Or to this person._

 _I told Han. Of all the people that exist in the entire galaxy, I told HAN. And I guess he didn't exactly react in a_ ** _terrible_** _way, or at least not in the way I expected him to react. Which is. . .good? I don't know. I'm just gonna come right out and say I have absolutely no idea what's happening anymore. Especially not with my. . .feelings._

 _Stupid feelings. As it turns out, I have them. A LOT of them. And the worst part is, I can't understand what most of them even ARE! When I lack control over my own life, I get stressed out. That's why I left home in the first place! But now, every day just makes me more and more aware of how little control I have over_ ** _anything_** _! Crushes never interested me. And I mean_ ** _never_** _. I'll admit that when I first met Han, I thought he was attractive. But he was also annoying. So extremely annoying. Something has changed, though, because he's still annoying (believe me, that won't ever change) but now I don't_ ** _mind_** _that he's annoying. Almost like I enjoy it. Our fights and teasing and everything used to bother me so much. . .but now I'm less annoyed and more. . .not exactly happy, but. . ._

 _Ugh! This is what I'm talking about! I don't even understand my own feelings, so how am I supposed to do anything about it?! I don't_ ** _want_** _to have this crush forever, but how do I get rid of it? Is that possible? Do people ever get rid of feelings like this, or am I just destined to deal with them forever?_

 _In all the romantic books I've read (not willingly) and all the stories my family has told me, the boy always falls in love with the girl. Then the boy tells the girl how he feels—usually through some grand romantic gesture—and she feels the same way. And the two of them live happily ever after._

 _But what if the girl falls in love with the boy first? Then what?! I've never heard a story like that! Does that just not happen and I'm really weird, or what? I'm so confused._

 _Not to assume Han doesn't feel the same way, but honestly? Why would he? It's not like he's ever shown any signs of liking me like that. . .at least, none that I've noticed. It's possible that he actually has, and my stupid crush has blinded me and made all the obvious signs completely invisible to me._

 _If only there was someone I could ask about this. But there isn't. Besides me, there are three other people on this ship, and one of them isn't even a person. There's the Wookiee, who I don't understand at all. There's my twin brother, but I can't talk to him about_ ** _boys_** _because that's just awkward. And the last person is Han, who is the person I have the despicable crush on, so that's out of the question._

 _So once again, I'm left to wrangle these feelings on my own. Don't know how I'm gonna do this. There's still 12 days left to be on this ship, and I have a sickening feeling that the crush will only grow. That's a freakish thought._

 _Oh. And let's not forget—MY DAD IS DARTH VADER._

 _To heck with feelings about boys! My FATHER is the most evil person in the galaxy, who, by the way, murdered a bunch of people and ruined lives and abandoned his wife and children. And became second-in-command to the Emperor. I'm pretty sure there isn't a good bone in his body._

 _Well. That's not true. He didn't seem all that evil when I met him years ago. . .and he wasn't exactly awful to me and Luke. He tolerated us, at least. And somehow, he knew to station his Star Destroyer over Tatooine, and I've given that a decent amount of thought. Sometimes I wonder. . .does he know we're his kids? He's Darth Vader. He has the Force, right? Wouldn't he be able to, I don't know, sense it or something?_

 _Maybe I'm overthinking things, but hey, it's possible._

 _I still feel stupid for breaking down in front of Han like that. The more I think about it, the more embarrassed I feel. He was probably all confused and weirded out. I wonder if he's still thinking about it. But he didn't look upset with me. In fact, he looked kind of. . .sincere._

 _Yeah. Definitely overthinking things. Since when does the girl like the boy and they live happily ever after? Never heard of it._

 _-Leia_

She slammed her journal closed and released a breath. The words had just come pouring out, and there was barely time for her to think before the pen was moving. Now she knew why she always loved journaling. It definitely helped. Although, Leia wasn't sure that it really fixed any of the problems she was experiencing. If anything, she felt even more conflicted and overwhelmed.

There was less weight on her shoulders, though. Feeling slightly more confident, Leia tucked her journal back into the satchel, but didn't stand up. Time had passed, but how much? Soon it would be time for bed, and Luke would come into the room. That could result in an inevitable conversation about feelings and thoughts and confessions and other unmentionable things.

Leaving the closet was too risky. _Way_ too risky. Everything that lay beyond the door held the threat of disastrous consequences.

Well, maybe she was being dramatic.

Just then, a knock sounded on the closet door, the sudden noise sending Leia's heart into overdrive. She swallowed, not wanting to open the door in the least. There wasn't anyone she wanted to talk to. Talking would make things worse. She might cry again, or admit more things she wasn't supposed to admit. What if she did _both_ —?!

Another hesitant knock.

"Leia? You in there?"

It was Han.

Oh gosh, oh gosh, it was Han—

No, she couldn't talk to him. Her heart was already pounding wildly, making her obnoxiously aware of how he made her feel. It was too awkward.

He used her real name again, though. Not "Your Worship". Not "Princess". Not a stupid nickname that he only ever used to spite her but she actually didn't mind that much—

Not the point.

"Go away," Leia finally ordered, her voice sounding less than intimidating. She heard Han heave an exhausted sigh.

"Look, I just wanna talk. I—I'm not mad, okay? I'm—can you just open the door?"

"No."

"Well—then, can you just listen? You don't even hafta open the door. Just hear me out."

Leia bit her lip, trying and failing to come up with an excuse to say no to that. He sounded too genuine and concerned for her to deny him the right to just talk to her.

Han sighed and leaned his head against the door—she heard the dull thud.

"Please?" he asked tiredly.

That was the first time he'd ever sounded so drained and honest at the same time. Leia couldn't find the strength to refuse.

"Fine." She scooted over to the door and leaned up against it, waiting for Han to begin. He must have slid down to her level, because his voice sounded much closer than before.

"I—well, you know I'm not the best with words, but. . .everything you told me? About—uh, about Vader? I believe you, okay? I believe you, and I don't hate you."

Leia blinked. "You don't?"

"Of course not!" He chuckled lightly. "You're pretty annoying sometimes, but I could never _hate_ you. Especially not for this. It's—it's not your fault. You know that, right?"

"I guess. . ."

"And listen. It doesn't matter who you're father is, alright? Your father could be Jabba the Hut for all I care. That doesn't—well, it doesn't make _you_ a bad person. You're not your father. And you're sure as heck not a monster. Understand?"

She didn't. Leia didn't understand how Han could be so _nice_ about this. Why was he doing this? He could've brushed the earlier experience off and moved on with his life. But he didn't. He came back. And there was something about his words that was oddly reassuring.

"Hey. Do you understand?" Han persisted. He sounded like Bail did whenever he reprimanded Leia about something.

"Yeah," Leia affirmed shakily. "Yeah, I understand."

"Good. And—if you ever want to, you know, talk about it a little more. . .I'm here. Okay?"

"Okay."

In a split second decision, Leia sprung to her feet. From the other side, Han rose and was about to turn away until he saw the door slide open. There stood Leia, looking small and utterly exhausted but still determined. Her hair was a mess of unruly curls, and the dark circles under her eyes looked intense, but to Han, none of that mattered.

In one step, Leia was out of the closet and wrapping her arms around Han, burying her face in his chest. He tensed up at first, wondering how to react. Eventually he gave up and hugged her back, holding her tightly against him and smiling despite himself. She didn't burst into tears this time, or show any signs of emotional overload.

"Thank you," she whispered, still holding on.

"Y-Yeah, no problem," replied Han. He'd be a dirty liar if he said he wasn't enjoying this. There was a lot he wished he had the courage to say, but that would have to wait. He was just glad he was able to help.

He continued. "I never thought I'd see the day."

Leia pulled back a bit, one eyebrow raised. "What do you mean?"

"You know. You. . .me. . .alone. . .in my bedroom—"

Leia let out a gasp of indignation, stepping back all the way to land a punch on Han's shoulder. He laughed, clearly joking, and Leia tried to stop the amused grin that pulled at the corners of her mouth.

"Get out," she demanded, feigning irritation. She pointed one insistent finger at the room's exit.

Hands up in mock surrender, Han grinned. "Alright, alright, no need to get fiesty! I'm going. But don't say you never had the chance—"

" _Out_!"

"Okay! I'm out!" Han strode out the doorway, turning back once to flash a grin. But not a cocky one. A sincere one. One that showed his (perfect) teeth and made him look happy and made _Leia_ happy.

It was a good feeling. And that night, Leia slept better than she had in a long time.

 **A/N: It's about time the poor girl was happy for a bit :p**

 **Also! The hyperdrive is actually in the back of the ship, in the engine room. The service access port (the "hole" with all the pipes in it) is in the main hold. But hey, it's a fanfic, and I'm utilizing the power of imagination ^_^" Just thought I'd clear that up in case there are any hardcore** ** _Millennium Falcon_** **fans out there :p**

 **Reviews are greatly appreciated!**

 **-Lia**


	61. Chapter 61: Screw Normal

**A/N: Real quick—it's been a bit, but I've been on vacation. Sorry about the wait, and this chapter is a long one. . .so grab your popcorn. Hopefully the length and content makes up for the wait. There are two moments in here that have been on hold for a while now, and the chapter took loads and loads of rewriting and revising. I hope you enjoy! :)**

 **Luke's Log**  
 **Day 6**

 _11:27 AM_

 _Leia won't talk to me! Well, I mean, she talks to me, but she won't tell me what she told Han yesterday! I don't know why. Is it seriously something so private and deep and personal that she can't tell me? But then why would she tell HAN? None of it makes any sense. I've tried everything! I tried asking really nicely and subtly, but she shut me down. So then I tried to convince her that she should tell me, and she actually got up and walked away. So. Here I am._

 _Han is still pretending he can fix the hyperdrive, so he's somewhere doing that. Chewie is flying the ship, as usual. I wonder if he ever gets tired of it. And Leia left to who knows where. Probably to tell more secrets to Han, or whatever those two get up to together. I don't really want to know. Asking her about it hasn't helped a bit, so it looks like I have to let it drop. At least for now. Hopefully it doesn't drive me insane._

 _I've survived sandstorms, life-changing discoveries (twin-sister-related ones), chemical fires, stormtrooper chases, and direct conversation with the Dark Lord. But I swear. This trip is gonna be the death of me._

 _12:34 PM_

 _Still nothing from Leia._

 _1:10 PM_

 _Asked Leia again and she said to buzz off or she'll mind trick me into kissing Chewbacca. She can't do that, though. . .can she? Not sure. But I stopped talking, just in case._

 _2:45 PM_

 _Am I the only one who hates this? No wonder I was never allowed to leave the planet. Uncle Owen knew all along that I would hate space travel. Shoulda refused to come on this trip when I had the chance. Ha. As if I even had a choice. I forgot where we're even going._

 _2:56 PM_

 _According to Han, we're en route to Coruscant, and he asked if I was okay, because I guess I already asked him about the destination. Twice. He insists he's going there to get a part—apparently, the hyperdrive has been needing a part for a very long time. Doesn't surprise me that he's waited this long. Doesn't surprise me one bit._

 _4:13 PM_

 _I wanna go home._

 _5:32 PM_

 _This sucks._

 _6:06 PM_

 _That's it. I'm finding Leia. I have to know what's going on, or I'm gonna lose it. And by "it", I mean my mind. I'm teetering on the edge of sanity, here. Not a fun place to be. She'll probably say I'm exaggerating. In fact, I'll bet Leia is gonna say something like, "Luke, it's not a big deal. Stop asking. You're being dramatic."_

 _I'll show HER who's dramatic. That doesn't really make sense, but I don't care._

Luke shook his head at himself and turned the datapad off. He hadn't seen his sister in a fair amount of time—had it already been a couple hours? At some point, Leia had wandered down the hall, probably headed for Han's room. It seemed like she only wanted to be alone all the time. Since when was that a thing that Leia enjoyed?

Figuring she'd be in their shared bedroom, Luke hopped off his perch in the main hold and trotted off through the ship. He couldn't hear Han yelling at the hyperdrive; the pilot must be taking a shift in the cockpit. Or off somewhere with Leia.

 _No, don't think like that._

The last thing Luke wanted to come across as was jealous. He wasn't jealous. Not really, anyway. Luke wasn't the type to tell Leia who she could and couldn't talk to, not that she'd even listen to him anyway. She was free to talk to Han as much as she wanted, and to be completely honest, _that_ had never bothered Luke. But never had he stopped to think that they might be talking about things behind his back. Stuff that Leia didn't want him to know.

Granted, if Leia didn't want to tell her own brother something, there was a good reason. The two of them didn't usually have a problem being open and honest with each other. He wanted to stop nagging and just respect Leia's privacy, but it was eating away at him, and he _had_ to know. Besides, there was something on Leia's mind that was bad enough to make her cry, so maybe he could help.

When Luke reached the entrance to Han's quarters, the mechanical door was open. Cautiously, not wanting to interrupt anything, he poked his head through the doorway and glanced around for Leia. She was there, hanging upside down from the foot of Han's bed, her head nearly touching the floor. Luke knew she had felt him enter (there's no way she didn't—they weren't blocking each other), but Leia didn't acknowledge him at all. Through heavy eyelids, she stared intently at the wall, looking focused.

Almost guiltily, Luke stepped into the room and cleared his throat, hoping for some sort of response. Leia only shifted her gaze the slightest bit to glance at him, then returned to her previous position.

"Thinking, huh?" asked Luke, standing next to the bed. "Mind if I join you?"

Leia eyed him warily, probably debating whether or not she was in the mood to deal with his nagging.

"I won't bother you," Luke promised earnestly. At that, Leia caved.

"I don't own the bed," she said. Luke figured that was as much of an invitation as he was going to get. He flopped down next to her, wriggling backwards until his head hung level with hers.

The two of them lay there in silence for a good amount of time, arms pressed lightly together. Every few minutes, Luke would sneak a look at his sister, but she was always staring ahead. Sometimes her eyes were closed. Luke didn't stoop to reading her mind, but he could feel her emotions, and that was good enough. The only problem was that Leia was feeling a _lot_ of emotions, and Luke was having trouble recognizing any of them. When he'd had enough silence, he was about to be straightforward.

But surprisingly, Leia spoke first.

"I'm uh. . .I'm sorry."

Eyebrows raised, Luke turned his head to look at her. "W-What?"

"I'm sorry. You know, for. . .keeping secrets. It's really not anything personal, I'm not mad at you. I just. . ." Leia let the words taper off, wishing she was better at explaining things. Instead of continuing, she met Luke's eyes and offered an apologetic smile. His blue eyes narrowed for the briefest of seconds, and she didn't blame him. Apologies weren't things she just handed out like candy.

Leia waited patiently for her brother to respond. If he needed to take his time, that was perfectly fine. Being fully aware of how left out he must feel, Leia didn't expect him to let everything go so easily. They were probably about to have a talk, which both of them could see coming miles away.

"You know. . .if there's something bothering you. . .you can tell me. Right?"

Ah, there it was. The unavoidable question. Leia appreciated Luke's concern and desire to help, but the outright truth just wasn't an option right now. She'd already failed to tell him once, so what was the point of trying again? Eventually she'd dig up the extra courage, but right now? In Han's room? When they both already had enough stress in their lives? It just didn't seem like the best time.

Then again, had it seemed like the best time when she told Han? Probably not. _Definitely_ not. That was the _worst_ possible time. But she still did it. And Han didn't react the awful way she thought he would've. Admittedly, it did feel good to tell someone and stop keeping it inside her. Like finally breathing after being underwater for too long.

That secret was her deepest and darkest. It was so painfully personal and heavy that the words almost stung as they left her mouth. Her secret pressed down on her even now, taunting her and mocking her. Laughing in her face because she couldn't change it. And that was what hurt the most.

Except it wasn't only _her_ secret. She just happened to find out first. The burden belonged to Luke as well—he just didn't feel it yet because he didn't know. He didn't know, and due to that, he felt isolated. And it was her fault. But if she _did_ tell him, he would be absolutely _crushed._ Devastated. Left to constantly question himself and fall into the dark void of lost identity. And you know what? _That_ would be her fault, too.

Either way, she was responsible for Luke's misery.

She gulped. "Y-Yeah. Yeah, I know. I just. . .well. . ."

"What?"

Leia sighed, letting her tired eyes close for a moment. This clearly wasn't working, so she needed to find another method. A method that always seemed to work was the Force. . .but if she requested help from it, or used it to find an answer, she might wind up with a conclusion she didn't like.

Without any other options, Leia suppressed the pessimistic thoughts and let her mind descend into the serene connection that she shared with the Force. It didn't take long anymore, which was a good sign. That meant she was getting stronger. Ben would probably be proud.

Quiet mind. Blank space. Slow breathing. Mutual trust. Just her and the Force, as one. Normally she enjoyed the feeling. Looked forward to it, even. But this time felt different, probably because she knew the answer to her question already. She was only holding onto the hope that the Force would suggest something else.

 _What do I do?_ Leia asked slowly.

She was asking about Luke, really. What should she tell him? They couldn't go on like this forever, him feeling stuck on the outside and her bearing the guilt. And it wasn't fair that she knew a secret about their heritage and he didn't. Something like that needed to go both ways. All things considered, Luke really did deserve to know. . .

And, as she knew it would, the Force agreed. Not out loud, of course; she had never heard a single, clear voice tell her anything when communicating with the Force. Sometimes several chorused voices in her mind, but it never seemed human. This was only a feeling. But the feeling was perfectly recognizable. An odd emotion between peace and resignation, where Leia knew in her heart what she had to do. No matter how painful and awful it would be, it had to be done sooner or later. If even the Force was urging her to tell Luke the truth, it must be time.

Telling him would be hard. Definitely harder than telling Han, because at least Han wasn't personally affected by the situation like Luke would be. However, the actual revelation part wasn't going to be the most difficult. Luke's reaction was going to be the worst part, by far. Would he cry, like her when she told Han? Yell, like she had wanted to? Sit there in shock, like she did when it finally clicked together?

Or would he just laugh in stricken disbelief, unable to accept the truth for what it was? If he didn't believe her, what was she supposed to do? And how could she bring it up?

Forced into defeat, Leia left the safety of the Force's atmosphere and opened her eyes. Luke was frowning at her expectantly, probably confused out of his mind.

Man, this was going to _suck._

"Um. So, Luke," Leia began carefully, fully dreading the words that would eventually be coming out of her mouth.

"Yeah?"

"I. . .haven't been completely honest with you. And—well, recently I. . .I've been thinking, and—" Leia groaned lightly. She couldn't just say it so directly, and words were already failing her. But she had to get it out somehow, because any number of things might happen in the next few minutes to prevent it. The possible distractions were almost endless.

"I. . .recently found out something. About—about my family. And I—I didn't tell you because. . .I didn't know how you would react."

That part was true, at least. Leia bit the inside of her cheek, refusing to let her emotions get out of control this time. She had to remain calm and composed, for Luke's sake if nothing else. They were both still hanging upside down, so close that Leia could feel her brother's feelings stronger than usual—she hadn't realized distance had anything to do with it, but it made sense, in a way.

Right now, Luke felt nervous. Which also made sense. Leia wasn't exactly being helpful with her vague explanation of everything, and things were about to get worse.

"Okay. . ." Luke prompted slowly.

Leia swallowed. "And uh. . .well, the problem is that it's kinda _your_ family, too. It's really kind of a big deal, but you might not even believe me—and I have _no_ idea how to tell you this. . ."

"Leia, it's okay," Luke finally assured. "If you don't wanna tell me, you don't have to. I'll understa—"

"No, you _need_ to know."

Luke blinked, surprised. By the tone of Leia's voice, this was more serious than he had thought. Clearly it was important to her, or she wouldn't sound so distraught about it.

Leia continued, "I've known for a while now, but I was too scared to tell you. It's. . .it's about our dad."

The uncharacteristic tremble in Leia's words was not reassuring at all. Out of nowhere, Luke's heart started beating faster than before, and that nagging feeling was at the back of his head again. Like something not-so-good was going to happen, and he was about to be in the middle of it. A knot of dread promptly formed in his stomach.

"What _about_ our dad? Don't we already know everything about Anakin?" His attempts at keeping his voice steady were failing. He could sense something awful coming on the horizon of this conversation.

"Not. . .everything."

Leia was experiencing major de ja vu. Her heart pounded so loud that she wondered if Luke could hear it, considering how close they were at the moment. Even telling Han hadn't been this stressful, and that was saying a lot. She was more emotionally unstable then, but now that she'd revealed the secret to one person, doing it a second time _should_ be easier. But it wasn't. It was _harder_. Every bone in her body protested and objected, already reliving how painful it was to just let a few of these words out to Han.

"Okay. . .so, what is it?" Luke asked anxiously, eager to get to the point.

Avoiding all eye contact—because if she met Luke's eyes, she might crack—and instead looking at the ceiling, Leia readied herself. This was it. The deciding moment. Was she going to tell her brother the crushing truth about their father? Or was she going to cave in and make up some other story? Once Luke knew the truth, he might not believe her, and that would be the most humiliating—

 _Oh._

Leia remembered when she had finally discovered the truth about Anakin. At first, she had trouble accepting and admitting it for what it was. But all along, even as she fought against it with everything she had, Leia had known in her heart that it was true. Perhaps it was the Force. Or maybe it was just her stronger sense of logic. Either way, she _knew_ it was true. And somehow, the princess understood that such would be the case with Luke.

So that was it. She was going to tell him. But not all at once. She couldn't. She'd have to work up to it, first presenting the evidence that she knew already. Then, at the end, she would drop the final bombshell that would change Luke's life forever. How he chose to accept it would be ultimately up to him. She only hoped he would handle it better than her.

"What we know about Anakin is true. He was every bit as heroic and compassionate as we believe he was. He married our mom, and then. . .disappeared after we were born. The thing is. . .I—I know where he disappeared to."

"Wait, _what_? Are you saying—?"

"Our dad is alive, yeah. But—"

"Leia, this is _fantastic_! Where is he? How did you figure out where he's hiding? Is he—"

"No, _listen_ ," Leia urged. "He's not—Anakin is different now. And—he—well. . .okay. You know how we were born on Empire Day? The _day_ the Empire was officially formed?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Luke's tone was nearing a defensive level, which meant he was subconsciously connecting the pieces of the puzzle. Leia winced.

"Well, think about it. Anakin just _happened_ to disappear on that same day. Ben said Anakin was his apprentice, or whatever it's called. He also said _Vader_ was a pupil of his, until he. . .turned evil. And the way Vader acted when we mentioned our mom. . .don't you think it was weird? Like—almost like he knew something we didn't?"

"I guess so."

"And Anakin's lightsaber? Vader took that from us on day one and claimed it was _his._ Oh, and the way Vader acts around us and treats us. . .almost like. . .he's more careful around us. And I think—I think we were separated when we were babies for our own protection. So we didn't have to grow up to be like—well, you know."

"No, Leia. I don't." Luke was trying his best to keep the truth locked out. He really was. It might even be working a tiny bit. But Leia knew him too well, and she understood that her brother was sinking slowly into the river of acceptance—which obviously was followed by denial's harsh current. And Luke was being swept up in it.

"Look, I—I don't know how to tell you this, but. . .our dad. . ."

Could she really say it again? Was she even capable of tossing that load of bricks at her brother? Her heart pounded wildly in protest, begging her to abandon this whole crazy idea.

But Luke was watching her closely, an expression of anxious expectation on his face. His eyes, usually so bright and full of life, had never looked so close to sadness. And fear. There was so much fear that Leia almost looked away again. She wanted to make up a nice, safe lie that would put all this conflict to rest, and maybe then they could relax for a while.

No. They couldn't. This _had_ to be done, because when would she get another opportunity like this to finally tell Luke the truth? She didn't have the cruelty in her to leave Luke stranded in the darkness for another how many years. Maybe forever. Leia could be stubborn, but never let it be said that she was cold-hearted.

She sighed. "I need you to promise that—that when I tell you, you'll stay calm. No matter how bad it seems, you can't freak out, okay?"

"What? If it's _that_ bad, how can you expect me to—?"

"Promise me!"

Their eyes locked for a few tense moments, in which Luke did some serious contemplating. At first, he hadn't the slightest idea what Leia was talking about. But as she went on, something clicked together in his brain, and suddenly he _did_ have an idea of what she was saying. It made more and more sense by the second, but Luke didn't like it. In fact, he _hated_ it. What Leia was suggesting was—it was—he couldn't even think of a word fit to describe it. All he knew was that it made him feel a way he despised.

He wanted her to say it. To confirm it. To tell him directly, so that he could stop wondering and know the truth for what it was. But if she ended up saying something that _wasn't_ what Luke was expecting, that would be great. Amazing, even. He couldn't accept this. He _wouldn't._ Leia was probably crazy. Delusional from all the emotional stress she'd been through recently.

"Okay, fine. I promise." He was scared, and he hated that, too.

But Leia looked more scared than he did.

"Our dad—well, he's not who we thought he was. I mean, he _was_ , but not anymore. And—I know it's gonna sound crazy, but the proof is all there—"

"Leia! Just tell me," Luke pleaded. "Please." If he waited another second, the suspense might kill him. But at the same time, maybe he'd rather not know. He now had a better understanding of why Leia didn't want to tell him anything. And maybe he agreed. If this news had affected Leia so strongly, maybe it was better if she _didn't_ tell him.

Except it was too late for that.

"Our dad is—he's—"

It was like telling Han all over again. She'd thought it would be easy, since it wasn't the first time she had to let it out. But she was so totally wrong. Doing it a second time was _so much worse._ By looking at her brother, Leia knew he was hoping she was kidding. That she was just going to start laughing and admit that it was all a big joke, and that he had nothing to worry about.

It wasn't a joke. It was real. _Too_ real.

And just like that, the first forbidden tear slid down her cheek. Or it would've, if she wasn't dangling upside down. Even though Luke didn't notice, Leia still cursed herself for allowing it. She couldn't afford to get emotional again! This revelation would undoubtedly send Luke into some sort of shock, and she needed to be there for him when it did. They _both_ couldn't be out of control.

She'd postponed the inevitable long enough. Luke _deserved to know._ If she waited any longer, the chance would pass her by and be gone for who knows how many more days. Months. Years. It was time.

"Our father. . .Anakin Skywalker. . ." Leia closed her eyes. ". . .is Darth Vader."

There was silence. The heaviest, darkest, most agonizing silence that either of them had ever felt in their lives. Really, it only lasted a few seconds at most, but every passing moment caused Leia's heart to beat faster. She waited for Luke to say something. _Anything._ But he refused to do anything but stare into Leia's eyes, searching for the unattainable answers to all his questions.

Then the reaction began. Breathing in sharply, Luke struggled to shoot into a sitting position, but the dizziness took over; he ended up tumbling backwards off the end of the bed. Leia scrambled to sit up as well, and she managed to get down on the floor, the swirling in her head being the least of her worries. Had she seriously just—told Luke—that their father was—

That didn't matter anymore. What mattered was being there for Luke and helping him understand. Even though she didn't understand much of anything these days.

Luke was on his knees, hands pressed flat against the floor and head bowed. His breaths came in shuddery gasps that shook his whole body. It only took Leia a second to realize he was crying. Or about to. Either way, this was not good.

She crawled over to him, one hand extended to his shoulder. But just before she touched him, a roaring tidal wave of feelings came rolling off of him and straight into _her._ The sensation was so strong that Leia was nearly knocked backwards.

"Luke, are you—?"

She wanted to ask if he was okay. But that was a stupid question. Of _course_ he wasn't okay! He was somewhere between a breakdown and a panic attack, and Leia's mind was racing so fast that she didn't—

"You're lying," Luke choked out.

Leia frowned. "W-what?"

"Tell me you're lying!" he shouted, head still bowed so Leia couldn't see his eyes. Flinching at his harsh tone, Leia finally placed her hand on Luke's shoulder. He didn't actively object.

"I'm not lying!" It came out sounding a lot less gentle than she'd hoped, but it was true. She _wished_ she was lying. She wished they'd both wake up and discover it had all been some messed up dream.

 _More like a nightmare._

"I'm not lying," she repeated, softer this time.

In all the days they'd spent together, and all the difficult things they'd pushed through, Leia could not remember seeing Luke cry. _She_ had, several times, about several different things. But Luke had always been strong, helping _her_ when she needed him, and comforting _her_ when she felt terrible. Never about anything this climactic, but still. And throughout all that, he'd remained as present and constant as ever, not once letting her down. Loyal friends were rare ones—Bail always told her that.

For all the trouble he'd been through to remain loyal to her (even when her plans backfired majorly—often), he didn't deserve this. Any of it. He deserved to be happy. He deserved—

"I don't believe you," Luke whispered, but it sounded like he was reassuring himself rather than Leia. Knowing that it was his final attempt at denial, the princess laid a hand on top of his.

"Luke. . .search your feelings. You know it's true." Her voice, which had stayed steady thus far, hitched at the end and betrayed the storm raging inside her. She swallowed, forcing it back down.

 _Don't cry don't cry don't cry don't cry—_

Luke sighed shakily, and Leia assumed he closed his eyes. After a brief pause, he raised his head to meet his sister's eyes. Leia forced herself to make eye contact, but her stomach dropped at what she saw there. She saw emptiness. And grief.

First, there was turmoil. As the two of them sat across from each other, on their knees, unspoken words transferred between them. Leia felt her brother's own storm inside him, a roaring tempest. Untamable. And dangerous. Storms never bothered her when she was on Alderaan, but this was different. This was internal, and inescapable. Leia knew he was having trouble accepting it. He knew it was true. He _knew._ But his eyes locked onto hers and stayed there.

 _Why?_ he asked.

And Leia's heart broke as she replied, _I don't know._

Second, there was pain. A lot of pain. It started as a dull ache in her heart, amplified by the hollowness that was already there because of the Dark Side. Then it grew. It grew like vines, the tendrils wrapping around her lungs and choking her until she had to force the air down her throat. But that was just the pain of seeing her brother so _empty._ His own pain was much worse, and she could feel that, too. It sunk into every bone in his body—not a physical pain, but an _emotional_ pain that became physical when the headache began and his stomach tied itself in a knot.

On average days, Leia never disliked having a twin. She loved Luke more than anything (other than Alderaan itself, maybe) and never once wished he wasn't related to her. But sometimes the bond they shared made things difficult. Like right now, when the Force was connecting their emotions and smashing Luke's feelings into her. On top of her own raging thoughts, Luke's made things much worse.

Anger. Fear. Dread. Denial. Sadness. Anxiety. Hopelessness. Confusion.

When the first tear rolled down Luke's face, Leia's resolve cracked and she broke down in conflicted tears herself. Never in her life had she felt so emotionally overloaded, and that was saying a lot, because her mind was always turning cartwheels and somersaults. She could feel her brother's emotions, but she wondered what he was thinking.

Helplessly, Leia squeezed his hand, hoping to offer some level of sympathy. And all at once, she knew Luke had accepted the truth. Not willingly. But he had very obviously gone to the Force for clarification, and now he was forced into acceptance. That couldn't be easy to go through. Leia knew. When _her_ feelings had confirmed the theory she hated so much, she struggled with it for days. Mostly she just didn't want to admit that her biological father was a monster, because that meant _she—_

Well. She wasn't a monster. Han didn't seem to think so, anyway. But she had the _potential_ to be one, and she was fully aware of that fact. It scared her on a daily basis, and she thought about it often. Just one more reason she didn't want to tell Luke in the first place—he probably thought he was a monster, too. That was enough to send him into a downward spiral of an identity crisis—she ought to know. She could relate on a deeply personal level.

Luke had yet to say anything out loud about it.

So Leia did.

"Luke, I. . ."

Scratch that. Words could only get you so far (plus, she was having trouble getting coherent phrases to form in her mind at all). Actions were better. The result of a split second decision, Leia reached for Luke and pulled him into the tightest hug she'd ever given anymore in her entire existence. And Luke, who had been trying to hold back the light sobs for so long, finally let them come. As he clutched the back of Leia's tunic, every single emotion inside of him came rushing out in the form of uncontrollable crying, and it shook Leia to her core. She never wanted to see her brother this way. She should've never said anything. He wasn't okay and it was all her fault—

"Why?" Luke choked out, and it took Leia half a second to realize he'd said it aloud. She held onto him a little tighter.

"I don't know." She used that answer already, but what else could she say? Gosh, she didn't know why. Sometimes, when Leia was alone or in bed, she got downright _lost_ in wondering _why_ Vader had to be their father. Why did Anakin have to turn to the Dark Side? Why did their mother have to die? If she thought about it too long, it gave her a migraine. But she didn't ever stop to think that Luke might have to wonder those things, too. That wasn't helping the current circumstance, either.

The twins stayed like that for a while, kneeling on the floor, arms wrapped around each other like lifelines. Leia lost count of how long she heard Luke crying—it was a sound she wished she could block out forever. He sounded so _hurt._ Leia briefly speculated that he might be angry at her. It didn't make much sense (after all, he was _hugging_ her and crying into her shoulder), but if he _was_ angry, she wouldn't blame him. Quite frankly, she was angry with herself for telling him. It was a bad idea.

"Thank you."

Wait—what?

Leia double checked reality to make sure she'd heard that right. Did Luke actually just _thank_ her? For ruining the rest of his existence? For dumping that weight on top of his conscience? For sending his happiness down the drain?!

"For—for what?" she asked, genuinely not understanding.

For a long minute, there was no reply. She just felt Luke's body shudder against hers with broken sobs. Had she just imagined those words? Considering their current state, Leia wouldn't put it past herself to hallucinate or hear things that weren't actually said.

But then she heard a response so quiet that she had to really strain to hear it.

"For telling me."

Through her tears, Leia blinked. Of all the things to be thankful for—

She pulled back, and took Luke by the shoulders, staring disbelievingly at his face. His eyes were red from crying—hers probably were, too—and he looked about as worn out as his sun-beaten tunic, but there was something else in his expression. Something that Leia couldn't place but understood as an emotion she'd felt herself at some point.

They didn't say anything to each other. Not one word. But even without verbally communicating, the twins understood one another. Luke and Leia exchanged feelings rather than words, and suddenly a wave of relief swept over them both.

Luke knew. He had accepted it. Probably not fully, and he would take a while to admit it out loud, but this was a start. He didn't even look mad, which already put him a step above the way Leia had handled it.

Then they were hugging again, and Leia could feel all the questions Luke had. Questions, concerns, worries, ideas, you name it. But those would have to wait until later, because something was happening. The whole room took on a certain atmosphere of _calm._ Leia could breathe normally again. Luke stopped shuddering and crying, and he released a breath that carried out all the previous grief and turmoil. It was like everything was—well, not exactly _fine_ , but things _would_ be fine. Soon.

And Leia finally understood why she wanted to go to Coruscant. The closure that she so desperately pined for would come through a final confrontation. Now that she knew Vader was her father, she wanted to make sure _he_ knew. Whether he was happy about it or not, he needed to know the identities of his own children. Leia didn't care that he was evil and dark-hearted and cruel and ruthless and angry. He was still her _dad._ She didn't have to be proud of who he was. Because, as Han said, she wasn't her father.

And neither was Luke.

Lastly, there was peace. Not the kind of peace that came with a bubbling creek or a serene landscape under a star-filled sky—although Leia certainly wouldn't mind such a thing. It was the kind of peace that—

All at once, Leia was reminded of a very specific moment in her childhood. She was nine years old and had just been in a fight with her father. The base of the argument was long since forgotten and lost to time, but that wasn't the important part. The important part was what happened _after_ the fight. Leia had been so upset that she'd gone crying to her dad, well past her bedtime, and they'd talked things out in the library. After that, the argument had seemed so trivial and childish. The two of them hugged and she apologized. . .and she was overcome with the most relieving sense of _calm._ Like the fight had never happened in the first place, and nothing was wrong in the galaxy.

She felt like _that._ It was _that_ kind of peace. Obviously everything in the galaxy was not perfect, but just for one second, it felt like it. And Leia was willing to let herself believe it.

Deep down, both of them knew the seriousness of the situation. They knew it would affect them for years to come. Maybe forever. They didn't know what to do now or what came next or how to move forward. They might not have their biological parents, or knowledge of their future, or even a decent plan of action. But they had each other, and they had friends who would be more than happy to be there for them.

And for now, that was good enough.

 **~•~**

That night was a rough one. As was to be expected, Han had come looking for them eventually, and Leia had created a plausible excuse for why they had been hiding out in the room for so long. She figured Han would ask more questions later, but for the moment, he'd had the decency to let the matter drop. The twins had looked like they'd been run over by speeders and tossed off a cliff—chances are, Han had his suspicions. Lots of 'em.

As Leia lay in bed next to her brother, she replayed the day's events over and over in her mind. She would've given just about anything to read Luke's mind right then, but he was asleep anyway. She heard his slow, rhythmic breathing coming from behind her. At some point, he'd wiggled closer and pressed his back against hers. Leia didn't mind, and she understood. It helped him feel less alone.

What she didn't understand was how Luke had managed to fall asleep so quickly. When she had accepted the truth about their father, sleep evaded her for days upon days. It still did. She slept a few hours every now and then, but most nights were spent by her tossing and turning until she gave up altogether. Like tonight, for example. Relaxation just wasn't possible. Not after what she'd told Luke just a few hours ago. The guilt still weighed heavily on her, even though she hadn't done anything _wrong._ But she was aware of how much Luke was struggling, despite him being asleep. What if he was having nightmares? What if, the next morning, he wouldn't talk to her?

Han had offered his company to her a while ago, in case she "wanted to talk about it". She knew exactly what "it" was.

Her father. No. _Vader._ She wasn't ready to always call him her father just yet.

At the time, Leia had declined and just thanked him, because she hadn't trusted herself to talk about it. One breakdown was already too many to have in front of Han. She had to maintain the last shards of dignity she had left, after all.

But now she was seriously reconsidering.

In fact—

Leia carefully pushed back the blanket and swung her legs over the side of the bed, grabbing her satchel from the floor. It was probably well past midnight, and she was wearing another one of Han's shirts as pajamas, but none of that mattered to her. She needed someone to talk to. Even for just a second.

As always, she could see all the life forms onboard as small pinpricks of light. One was bigger than the other two, and something told her it was Han. The light was always larger when the person was awake. He was in the main hold.

It only took her a minute to make her way to the main hold of the _Falcon_ , and sure enough, Han was there. Cautiously, Leia poked her head around the edge of the entryway, studying him. What she saw perplexed her.

Han was sitting at the game table, elbows resting on it and head in his hands. That alone wasn't what set off the warning light in Leia's subconscious. It was the feeling she got from it. So she closed her eyes and stretched out with the Force, letting the full intensity of Han's emotions sweep over her, settling inside her.

It was another storm, similar to Luke's, but for different reasons. A swirling vortex of mixed thoughts, all centering around one in particular. A tornado of passion, worry, fear, anger, and. . .somewhere inside it, there was happiness. Leia frowned as her eyes blinked open. She'd seen Han conflicted before, but this was another level entirely. She didn't like it at all.

She liked it even less when she realized those emotions were about _her._

For some reason, an unwelcome warmth crept up her neck and spread to her cheeks. Hurriedly, the princess ducked back around the corner, no longer willing to start a conversation. Not only was this so utterly unlike Han, but all those emotions hadn't been bad. Some were. . .well, _good._ Her cheeks burned even more.

Leia almost disconnected from Han's emotional center, because he was clearly struggling with some feelings that she could relate to, and this was just another thing that made her head spin. But then she got an idea. A sneaky, risky, somewhat childish, somewhat _wicked_ idea. It grew and grew until she couldn't ignore it anymore and had to go through with it.

Diving back into the Force, she tethered herself to that emotional core and focused. Perhaps it was just the rush of adrenaline that came from the action, but Leia couldn't remember focusing so hard on anything in her whole life. And of course, there was the fact that she'd never _done_ something quite like this before. Maybe it wouldn't even work. Maybe she should stop and just—

Too late—she was in.

In Han's _head._

She had read minds before. . .kind of. When she and Luke communicated through their bond, it wasn't the same as directly reading someone's mind. Connecting to someone's emotions was also completely different. As it turned out, the human mind was more complex and terrifying than she'd ever imagined.

Han's thoughts hit her like she'd just slammed into a tree trunk. Now, instead of just feelings, there were words. Not really full, coherent sentences, but words just the same.

 _Leia. Coruscant. Darth Vader. Father. What? Maybe. How I feel. Crazy. Can't._

Those words might have turned into complete sentences if she had a little more practice, but for now, all she got was that. And it was definitely about her. And a lot of other things, too.

Then suddenly:

 _Love._

That word startled Leia so badly that she lost her concentration and fell out of the connection. And to make matters worse, she stumbled and crashed into one of Han's stupid crates.

"Who's there?" Han called, but he failed at sounding irritated. He just seemed tired.

Sheepishly, Leia emerged from her hiding place and stepped into the room, hands clasped behind her back. She smiled innocently, just in case Han was mad. But he didn't look all that upset. Just kind of embarrassed. For once, it was nice to see someone _else_ blushing.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" Han asked, straightening up only slightly.

"I could ask you the same thing." Leia shuffled closer. "Is this seat taken?"

Han eyed her. "It's a free galaxy."

They both chuckled a little at that, because they both knew it wasn't.

Nevertheless, Leia slid in next to him, leaving some space between the two of them. Despite the late hour and the fact she was confused out of her mind, Leia wanted to find out what was going on inside Han's head. Hopefully she could be smooth about it. But being that close to him was making it hard to concentrate on anything. She could already feel her pulse quickening.

"Couldn't sleep," Han explained. "What's your excuse?"

"I couldn't sleep either. There's just. . .a lot on my mind. You know?"

"Yeah, no kidding," Han said. It came out in a laugh that suggested he knew something she didn't. Except she actually _did._

"Well, my life's a mess. What's _your_ excuse?" Leia teased.

Rather than answering, Han only turned and looked at her. Leia's poor heart hammered into overdrive when his eyes met her own.

She knew it was wrong. She knew it was just her stupid teenage hormones firing out of control and that this _thing_ she wanted to happen was impossible. She was a princess. He was a smuggler. A mercenary. A _scoundrel._ What would her parents say if they knew? They would be so disappointed in her. And her _aunts_ —! Leia couldn't even complete the thought.

It couldn't happen. She told herself to stop. Stop smiling. Stop looking at his eyes. Stop _everything_! Stop before she did something that couldn't be reversed. She needed to use the common sense that her parents had spent years teaching her. Who cares if she had heard "love" in his thoughts? That could've been about anything or anyone. Not her. _Definitely_ not her. They weren't even friends, right? They argued and fought and threw insults back and forth at one another and annoyed the living daylights out of—

"I've just been thinking," Han said as he turned away, and Leia instantly missed the feeling his eyes gave her.

 _Stop stop stop–_

"You? That's dangerous," Leia baited, hoping to make things normal again. Witty comebacks were normal for them. Internally, she begged Han to tease her back. To insult her. To make her angry, and then she could stand up and storm off. It would be like it used to be. When Leia saw Han as the cocky pilot and he saw her as the annoying princess. She needed things to go back to normal. Immediately.

But Han didn't say anything. He didnt even look at her.

Leia's eyes widened in dismay. If Han couldn't even make a smug comment in return, something was definitely wrong. He was contemplating something. She sensed a new sort of tension around him, like she was making him uncomfortable. That worried her. Usually it was the other way around. None of it was normal. After everything, she _really_ needed something to stay the same. For just _one thing_ to be normal.

Suddenly, she didn't want to know what Han had meant by "love". Not one bit. Well. . .maybe a _little_ bit. But she'd rather argue with him. Arguing with him was _normal._ She could feel what was coming. The electricity was there. She had to do something before it got out of hand.

"I told Luke," she blurted out.

 _That_ got Han to look at her. Leia bit down sharply on her tongue, wondering what had possessed her to say it. She hadn't meant to tell him yet—

"About—about your father?" he asked, that intense, curious look on his face. Like he was holding on to every word she spoke.

Leia swallowed. "Yeah." She shifted on the couch to face him. "He, uh. . .was upset."

Something resembling sympathy appeared in Han's eyes. "I bet. Did he. . .I dunno, did he believe you?"

"Not at first. But he does now."

A moment of solemn silence passed.

"I meant what I said. About you not being your father. You know that, right?"

Leia nodded, not really looking at Han's face. She felt it. Electricity in the air. Butterflies in her stomach. This couldn't be happening. It _wasn't_ happening. The only thing she could think of was how outraged her family would be. It was unorthodox and unheard of. She was _royalty._ She'd spent weeks denying and attacking the obvious way she felt about him. Not because she didn't _want_ to like him, but because she _couldn't._ That was a rule she might not be capable of breaking.

Suddenly, she knew why she'd felt led to come out here and talk to Han. The Force knew what needed to happen. She wished she could yell at it.

"Then what are you so afraid of?" he asked.

"Afraid?"

There were a lot of things she was afraid of. One of them was where this "casual" conversation was headed. But she wasn't doing anything to stop it. Somehow, Han had gotten closer to her. So close that their knees brushed together and their hands were mere centimeters apart on the couch.

How had this happened, again? She was going to talk about her father. About Luke. About all the stress and worries and problems that were occurring in her life. And Han was supposed to listen and nod, make a few jokes, and then everything would be fine again. She would go to bed and be able to sleep. But no. In some odd turn of events, she had ended up much too close to Han, wondering how in the worlds she was going to get out of this.

Maybe she didn't want to. She _didn't._ This was a scene she'd dreamt about many times—but then she'd always wake up and glare at the ceiling until the very idea was rendered insane. Everything about this felt wrong. Like she was going behind her parents' backs—which she was, in a way. And up until this point, she had never been quite sure if Han felt the same way. It was always one of her hidden fears, tucked away in the recesses of her mind.

Han knew, Leia realized. He was aware of how he made her feel, and he knew exactly what he was doing right now. She needed a break from all the chaos happening around her. She needed someone to make things _normal_ again.

The way Han was looking at her wasn't normal. Neither was the way her hand was holding his—which Leia didn't remember doing, but hey, she wasn't complaining.

But—

She _couldn't_ do this.

"Stop," Leia suddenly ordered, tugging at her hand.

Han's eyebrows went up. "Easy, Your Worship, I'm only trying to help!"

"Would you _please_ stop calling me that?"

"Sure, _Leia_."

For that brief second, things felt normal again. She had managed to steer them back to more appropriate grounds. Now if only it would stay that way.

"You make it so difficult sometimes," she said, giving up and turning away. She had too much to think about. This was the last thing she needed tonight.

"I do, I really do," Han replied, but his tone was sarcastic—that was good. She could handle sarcastic. Sarcastic was familiar. "Admit it. Sometimes you think I'm alright."

"Occasionally. Maybe. When you aren't acting like a _scoundrel._ " Once again, the words had left her mouth before she could think.

"Scoundrel? _Scoundrel_? I like the sound of that."

Oh no. The sarcasm was gone, and Han's tone had shifted into something else. It was nearing a husky sort of whisper that sent Leia's mind skyrocketing. Their eyes were locked again, and she couldn't pull hers away, no matter how hard she tried. Han had gotten closer still, and Leia was unconsciously leaning back. Her hand was still in his.

"You're trembling," Han pointed out, his eyes narrowing as he looked her over. Words crashed into each other inside her brain, but none of them formed the intelligent reply she was hoping for.

"I'm not trembling." That had to be her weakest dodge ever, and she knew it. Han did, too. But she simply couldn't focus. She was vaguely aware of how fast her heart was pounding and how strangely frantic and light-headed she felt. Never had she ever felt so _not_ in control of herself and her own mind. Oddly enough, she didn't hate it.

"You like me because I'm a scoundrel. You need more scoundrels in your life." He was getting closer and Leia wasn't moving at all. There was nothing stopping her from getting up and walking away—or running. Running would also be good. But she stayed where she was. Was she breathing? Did she even remember _how_ to breathe? Leia didn't know. At some point, her eyes had moved to Han's lips, and now she was stuck there, too. With the little control she had left, Leia forced herself to meet his eyes. She waited for him to crack that cocky grin and tell her he was only kidding. But it didn't happen.

In a shuddery breath, Leia said, "I happen to like nice men."

Did she? She couldn't remember. Leia didn't even remember where she was or what she had been doing in the first place. There was only Han and her, sitting there, so close that she could feel his breath on her face. What was happening? What should she do? This wasn't normal! _None_ of it was normal! If she let this happen, nothing would be normal ever again!

"I'm a nice man," Han offered, somehow getting even closer.

Leia didn't understand anything. Not one single thing. She didn't understand how Han could make her feel this way with just one look, or why he was just now deciding to act on his feelings, or what she was supposed to do. None of it felt normal, and suddenly—

Suddenly she didn't care.

She tried to get the last word. She really did. That was how their game always went. Whoever got in the final remark won. So, since things couldn't be normal, she made a final jab at winning.

"No you're not, you're—"

But then Han closed the distance between them and his lips were on hers, and Leia was so shocked that she fell back and had to hold herself up with one of her hands. Unfamiliar tingles ran down the length of her arms, and she shivered. Her free hand went to Han's shoulder, and she thought she could feel one of his hands on the back of her head. Leia wasn't sure. The only thing she was sure of was that she was _kissing._ She was kissing _Han._ And _gosh_ did it feel great.

Sometimes her parents got a look in their eyes. A look they shared before they were about to kiss, and when Leia was a child, she would cover her eyes and squeal. But now she understood. She understood why they looked at each other like that.

Leia's eyes had closed, but she saw swirling colors behind her eyelids. Colors and sparks and fireworks. She wondered if Han saw them, too. Leia was kind of aware of a dull ache in her wrist (probably from holding herself up) and Han's breath on her face. But everything else melted away into nothing. The moment lasted for ever and ever and ever—really only a few seconds. But it seemed like forever. She wanted it to be forever.

But she also had to breathe.

Leia pulled back reluctantly, her heart pounding and pounding like there was no tomorrow. She could still feel Han's lips on hers. When she opened her eyes, Han was watching her. Then his face lit up in a smile that Leia had never seen before. It wasn't cocky or smug or teasing or sarcastic or any of those things that were normal. Han's smile was genuine and _happy._ Leia's heart beat even faster when she remembered. _She_ had made him happy.

Her emotions were overwhelming and unable to be verbalized. But that was okay. Han was here and he was smiling and she had _kissed him._ Or had he kissed _her_? It didn't matter. It had happened, and Leia's lips still felt tingly from where they had met Han's.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that," Han finally said, and just like that, the cockiness was back. Leia loved it.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. You know what else?"

"What?"

Han smiled. "I win."

Leia knew he was right, even though it was now officially more than just a game. He had definitely won.

And she smiled back.

 **A/N: Well, you made it to the end! And may I just say. . .WHEW. A lot of that wasn't even supposed to happen until later, but I revised so much of the ending that I ended up jamming it in here. This is the longest chapter I've ever written. Like, ever. Don't worry, the last chapters won't be anywhere near this long :p**

 **I hope you guys liked it! Leave me a review if you did! They make my day :)**

 **(Also, I know The Kiss Scene was very similar to the one in Empire Strikes Back. That's the point. I just put a bit of my own spin on it, haha. It was fun to write!)**

 **Have a great day or night, everyone!**


	62. Chapter 62: Just Another Day in Paradise

**A/N: Hey all! Sorry for the big gap between uploads, school is back in sesh, and to be honest, junior year is a lot harder than sophomore year. Plus, there's the whole "I'm at a totally different school" factor. But it's fine, I'm FINE XD**

 **Reviews!**

 **changingdestiny40: Thank you! Chapter 61 was my favorite chapter that I've written, I think. Yeah, you know, I thought about adding Padme in somehow, but I couldn't figure out a way to do it and tie it into the current plot...so I just kinda didn't :p Hopefully sometime in the future, though!  
No, they did not use tongue XD !  
Mara Jade, you say? Haha, maybe someday. The remainder of this story is prewritten, so it's not in the plot. But you never know what could happen in a future story ;)  
Yes, so basically, here's how the Force relates to the situation: my belief or "headcanon" or whatever it's called, is that the Force is an intelligent being (force) that has knowledge of what is happening to the people that use it. The Force knew (kind of subconsciously since it's not human) that they needed to get the conversation out of the way so they had time to heal and figure things out together. Waiting would have just made things worse. Thanks for your review!**

 **thegingeRNightowl: They are indeed awkward, but that's all part of the fun XD Aw, thank you! I'm glad to hear it's one of your favorites! Twins will be interacting with Vader very soon!**

 **Alright folks, let's get this show on the road!**

oOo

Luke's world had been, to say the least, knocked straight out of orbit. He'd known that Leia was keeping a secret, but the magnitude of it didn't register until it was too late. He never should have asked her about it. Maybe then he wouldn't feel like he was being sucked into a black hole.

Some obnoxious, dark part of him wanted to be mad at his sister. . .but he couldn't bring himself to really feel it. It wasn't _her_ fault that their father was—

Wow. He also hadn't realized it would be so hard to admit it to himself. Even _thinking_ the truth was difficult. No wonder Leia had been so hesitant to tell him. She herself had been dealing with that knowledge for weeks, all alone. Without anyone to talk to about it. If anything, Luke felt _sad_ for Leia.

He still had a hard time processing exactly what had happened last night. Some of it was easy to recall. For example, he remembered going off to find Leia, and eventually joining her in hanging upside down off Han's bed. Then they started talking; Leia built her way up to the big reveal. He even remembered the words.

 _Our father. . .Anakin Skywalker. . .is Darth Vader._

But everything after that was a blur of static and endless spinning. He _definitely_ remembered the spinning. After Leia had told him, he must have fallen off the bed or something, because the room spun around him and suddenly he was on the floor. Except things never really _stopped_ spinning. The panic kicked in, and he had a fuzzy memory of Leia hugging him. They had spoken to each other briefly, but had it been out loud, or through the Force?

Really, the only things he could still remember clearly were the emotions. And those were the things he'd rather _forget._

He'd never felt so empty. So numb. So _angry._ He had been mad at everything and everyone. His father was _Darth Vader_. And it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair to him _or_ Leia. His aunt and uncle had kept that from him. Leia's adoptive parents had never told her either. Even _Ben Kenobi_ had lied to them about their father! Ben had said that Anakin "disappeared" after the Clone Wars and was never seen again. He'd made it seem like their father was probably _dead._

Bitterly, Luke realized that part was true. Anakin was dead. The Dark Side had murdered him and turned him into the monster everyone called Darth Vader.

At first, Luke didn't want to believe it. Even as Leia was presenting her proof, the pieces started coming together to form the final picture, but Luke resented it. Instead of facing the truth, he had run the other way and hid under the shelter of denial. But then Leia said something to him (he didn't remember what) and he had searched his feelings and the Force for evidence that it was true. And sure enough, it was.

That feeling had been worst of all. The sinking feeling. It had been even worse than the spinning. Luke sank down, down, down, into an endless void of confusion and loss. He stayed there for a long time. He wanted to yell and scream and throw things, but at the same time he wanted to collapse on the ground and just _cry._ For all he knew, he could've done all of those things. Leia probably remembered, but he was too scared to ask her. He'd rather not know how he reacted in front of her. She was probably horrified.

 _He_ was horrified. Because now that he _knew_ , he couldn't see things any other way and it made so much _sense._ Everything that used to be impossible was suddenly possible. And it made him want to curl up in a ball and disappear forever. Except he couldn't do that either, because he had to be there for his sister and friends.

Among all the fierce hatred for Vader, there was now something new. An odd sort of connection that Luke felt whenever he thought about him. It wasn't love—not yet, and possibly never. But it was kind of close to that. Like a deep knowledge of what relationship Luke had with him, and how that bonded them together, whether he liked it or not. Tiredly, he wondered if Leia felt that same thing.

He hadn't talked to Leia about any of it yet. Maybe it was because the wound was still a little too fresh, or maybe it was because he didn't want Leia to feel guilty for "making him feel bad". None of it was her fault anyway. He was _glad_ he knew now; it was better to find out sooner than later.

Never in a million years had he guessed his life would turn out like this.

 **Day 7**  
 **Luke's Log**

 _7:10 AM_

 _This feels weird. Just yesterday I was writing like I always do. About normal stuff. And now everything seems so different. Well, it IS different._

 _Last night, Leia told me about my father. OUR father. Anakin Skywalker. And to put a long story short, Anakin is Darth Vader._

 _Yeah. I don't know what else to say about it. Leia told me everything and I probably reacted in an embarrassing way, and then later we went to bed. The thing is, Leia always said that writing about her feelings helped her deal with them. But right now, recapping what happened is the last thing I want to do. Because I want to forget how I felt and how she looked at me and_ ** _everything_** _about last night. Everyone just thinks I'm an oblivious kid who doesn't understand anything—or Han does, anyway. And that's not true. I understand PLENTY. I understand what Leia told me, and I hate it._

 _And if I write about it, one day I might have to read it. If I can avoid reliving the pain, I'm gonna spring for the chance. I feel like I should talk to Leia about it, considering it's kind of a joint issue here, but when I woke up, she wasn't here. Leia never gets up early, so I'm not sure what she could be doing right now. Part of me wants to sit here in bed for all of eternity, but another part wants to move on already. To be honest, both options seem pretty lousy right about now._

 _I wonder if I'll ever get used to this. This disgusting feeling I have. And mostly, it's just how I feel about_ ** _myself_** _, now that I know the truth. I almost feel. . .dirty, or something. Never was the best at describing feelings, but it's not a good one._

 _To make matters worse, we're still headed to Cosuscant. The heart of the Empire. Where Vader is. And, let's be honest, also probably where Palpatine is. What I wouldn't give to make Han turn this ship around. But Leia wants to keep going. Of course, she's always been more assertive when it came to confronting Vader and all that nonsense. But if Vader knows we're his kids, I think I might lose it._

 _You know what I would really love right now? For a huge hole to open up in the floor and swallow me._

 _But I'm never that lucky._

Luke shut off the datapad more forcefully than necessary and rolled over with a groan. He felt like death. Probably looked like it, too. Unbeknownst to Leia, he had spent the better half of the night lying awake, until he eventually silently cried himself to sleep. He could still feel the leftover burn that the tears had left in his eyes.

It was definitely morning. He'd have to get out of bed at some point, he supposed. Maybe in a few minutes.

Or hours.

Or never.

Everything beyond that room seemed so large and problematic and terrifying. Life had exploded into hundreds of overwhelming feelings and now there was too much to think about and all of it was happening too fast—

Luke sighed heavily, wanting nothing more than to forget everything Leia had told him. Except logic kept him tethered to reality, and he knew it was better this way. It may not feel like it now, but one day he would be grateful that he knew the truth. One day.

But not today.

He rolled out of bed, atrocious bed head and all, and rubbed his eyes. The door was the only thing between him and the inevitable confrontation of the people in the ship beyond. Luke felt emotionally drained and physically dead, but there was still a week left of the blasted trip, and he was going to make the best of it.

And out the door he went.

 **~•~**

When Leia woke up, she had no idea where she was. She was so confused, in fact, that her whole body snapped to attention and she tumbled to the floor, a blanket tangled around her limbs.

"What the—?"

Leia was in the main hold of the _Falcon_ and had rolled off the couch. She now lay on the floor, wedged between the seat and the game table. How in the worlds had she ended up there? Didn't she usually sleep in Han's room? Where was everyone?

Then she remembered.

Last night. . .coming to the main hold. . .the kiss—

She had—

Oh _gods_ , she had _kissed_ him—

A chill shivered down Leia's arms, weird but not entirely unpleasant. She rubbed the chill away and sighed, her mind involuntarily slipping back into that blank space of calm—

Well, it _used_ to be calm. Now it was filled with thoughts of Han. Usually she tried to avoid thinking about Han, because the thoughts tended to collide and crash together, moving too fast for her to be able to analyze anything. Not anymore. Now it was all orderly and compartmentalized, and things sat perfectly still. Perhaps due to that fact, everything made perfect sense. Her feelings for Han were as clear as the chandelier hanging in her palace's dining hall. Leia didn't understand _why_ things finally made sense, and she wished her stupid brain had gone and done this weeks ago, but there was no evidence of her feelings being any different. It felt like Han had just always been there. It felt. . .

Unsettling, to say the least. Deep in her subconscious, she knew there had once been a time that Han was nothing more than an obnoxious inconvenience to her. An obstacle that she had to hurdle over if she wanted to move on with her life and for things to go as planned. He used to be so _annoying._ She remembered the feelings he used to give her. Embarrassment. Anger. Spite. Irritation. Competitiveness. And. . .

 _Whoa._

Love? She didn't remember love being a part of it in the beginning—or _ever_! Leia wasn't even fourteen yet! The only people she _loved_ were her parents, and Luke, and that was the kind of platonic love strictly _reserved for family._ Sometimes, she supposed, she _liked_ Han. Or rather, there were days that he wasn't _quite_ so unbearable. But _love_? That was new. That was different. That was _terrifying._

But the evidence was all there. She currently did _feel_ love towards him, so. . .it must be true, right? Was this what her parents meant when they said she would have to grow up soon? All that time, had they been talking about _this_? She wished they would've given her a better warning. Or _any_ warning. When her mom and dad were romantic with each other, Leia gagged and choked and turned away, all for the sake of appearances. Secretly, she'd always admired the love her parents had for one another. Somewhere inside her, she knew she would experience the same thing one day. But not so _soon_.

 _She wasn't even fourteen._ That couldn't be old enough to feel real, genuine, actual _love._ This had to be another tragic mistake that her cursed teenage girl mind had caused. It was a silly crush, maybe. Not love.

Then again. . .people didn't normally _kiss_ someone that they didn't love. So, in that case, maybe she really _did—_

 _Gosh,_ she hated it when things made sense.

 ** _~•~_**

Han had been from one side of the galaxy to the other. He had stared danger in the face and laughed, several times over. He had been in so many risky situations, escaped so many Imperials, and had practically cheated death more than once, usually making it out with nothing more than a few cuts and bruises. He was a smuggler. A space pirate. Some might even call him a—dare he say it— _scoundrel._ With his unending courage and limitless intelligence (he wasn't being egotistical—he _wasn't_!), there was nothing he couldn't deal with.

Except, apparently, feelings.

Ever since the events of the previous night, there wasn't much else he could think about. Everything just kept coming back to her. And all his confusing feelings were _still_ pretty maddening, but at least he was finally able to make a little more sense of them. In a way, it was reassuring to know that he hadn't gone crazy after all—he really did like Leia. Maybe even—

Whoa, he wasn't ready for that word yet. Not until he figured this out a little more.

But still. . .

They had spent a good hour sitting together last night, just talking. There was some teasing and some cocky remarks, but it had a different tone now. He wasn't sure how it could've changed so abruptly, but he also didn't have the mental capacity to understand how those things worked. They'd always teased each other. Well, more accurately, _he_ teased _her._ He only ever did it because he knew it made her mad. There was no pleasure greater than seeing Leia's eyes narrow in fury, silently daring him to say anything further. She was a tough nut to crack, though, and sometimes it took several flirtatious comments to bring her to the breaking point. _That_ was always entertaining.

But even though his teasing had sounded suggestive and mildly romantic, he'd never really _meant_ it. At least, he'd thought he didn't. Now Han was having second thoughts and forced to question his previous motives. After much speculation, he'd come to the astonishing conclusion that he was totally wrong and everything he'd ever thought about himself and Leia was a complete and utter lie. The feelings had always been there, lying sneakily under a façade of smug confidence, just waiting to break loose and run rampant. He _liked_ her. As more than just a friend.

And he _kissed_ her.

Gods knew that wasn't how the night was supposed to go.

It just sort of. . . _happened._ He couldn't even remember everything that he had said, but he remembered the look on Leia's face as clear as if she was standing in front him right now. At first, she had been scared. Confused. And he couldn't even be upset about it because she had a totally valid reason to feel that way. After all those weeks of "empty" teasing and heated arguments and just _chaos_ _,_ he had taken everything that was normal for her and tossed it out the window. And he knew he had extinguished "normal" for the both of them.

He wasn't mad about it.

He just didn't know where to go from there. What had the kiss meant? Who knows, maybe she didn't even feel the same way and had just kissed him back because she didn't know what else to do—

No. Leia was smarter than that. And stronger. If she didn't like him or what he was doing, she would've jumped away and screamed at him until his ears fell off. Not like she didn't have the chance. But instead, Leia sat there and went along with it. Which he hadn't been expecting. Then again, none of it had been planned. If he was being honest, Han was pretty proud of himself for pulling the move off so smoothly, and with no preparation.

And there was the fact that Han had kissed maybe a couple of other girls in his lifetime, and neither of them had felt as explosive as the one with Leia. Explosive in a good way, though. Like fireworks. Or a meteor shower. (Far be it from him to come up with good poetic comparisons.)

It was all so new and exciting and strange. He wanted to understand it more, but maybe it was just too early. He needed more time. Thankfully, the trip wasn't over yet. There was a chance that he could yet turn this into something good.

 **~•~**

Leia was nervous about talking to Han again, so it kept her away from him for a good couple of hours after she woke up. Would it be awkward? What would they talk about? Were they supposed to talk about what happened last night, or just move on and act like it never happened? Neither seemed like a good option. But she also knew it was one or the other that would eventually happen, and Leia decided that ignoring the kiss was worse than acknowledging it. However, maybe she'd let _him_ bring it up first.

Whatever the case, she couldn't stay holed up in the main hold forever. It would've been nice to have some company, but Luke had made himself scarce. He was awake—Leia could feel his vibrant signature across the ship. Why wasn't he—

 _Oh._

Then she remembered something _else_. The kiss wasn't the only thing that happened last night. Last night, Leia had told her brother about their dad's identity. And, to be completely honest, his reaction was not quite what she had expected. Expectations had lay somewhere between "anger" and "grief". Instead, she'd seen a confusing mix of absolutely every negative emotion that existed, and it had been unbelievably scary, because it was so opposite from what Luke was normally like. All she could do was hope he would eventually find his way back to the happiness of his previous mindset. She would be there for him as long as she possibly could.

Maybe she ought to find her brother and make sure he was okay. Han could wait—there were more important matters she needed to deal with first. Like the stableness of her twin's sanity, for instance.

Hopping off her perch on top of a wobbly crate, Leia headed off in the direction she knew Luke was. That was the good thing about constantly feeling his presence: it was way easier to find him. When she reached the right spot, Leia noticed the metallic door looked very familiar. It only took her a few seconds to realize it was the cargo hold she'd spent a few nights in during the beginning of her journey. A month ago. Nostalgia was a strange thing, but for some reason, she felt almost a little sad from being in that area again. Like it represented a different part of her life and herself. A less complicated part.

"Luke? It's me. . .are you in there?"

There was silence for so long that she almost gave up and walked away. But then she heard some shuffling and a soft click. Soon, Luke's head poked out of the door as it slid open. He didn't say anything, but that was okay. They didn't need words. Leia understood.

She stepped wordlessly through the door, watching as Luke leaned back against the wall with a sigh. For whatever reason, he wouldn't meet her eyes and kept his gaze fixed on his feet. He looked like he wanted to say something, but he never did. So Leia took the first step towards the restoration of his joy.

"Are you—" Again, she stopped. Of course he wasn't okay. What a completely useless question. She would have to do better than that if she was going to fix anything.

So, she said, "You're not okay."

Luke looked up.

"I'm—"

"You're _not_ okay. You're not fine. It's—you don't _have_ to be okay. And I won't judge you if you aren't. I'm not okay. Han's not okay. _None_ of us are totally okay. And you know what? That's _fine._ It's okay to not be okay. Understand?"

She didn't know where all that had come from, but after she was done and slightly out of breath, it made a lot of sense. Why hadn't she thought of that before? Maybe she should start listening to her own advice—it would probably save her a lot of worrying.

 _It's okay to not be okay._

Luke seemed to take those words into consideration. After a long moment, he looked up at her and scrunched his eyebrows together in a question.

"Are we—?"

"No," Leia interrupted, knowing exactly what he was about to ask. "We're not. Vader is our father but that doesn't mean we're _like_ him. You and I make our own choices about who we are."

"Promise?" Luke whispered.

The princess blinked. "Yeah. I promise."

She pulled him into a quick hug before he could protest, and to her surprise, he hugged back.

They were broken and tired and scared and overwhelmed and very much _not_ okay. But that was fine. For now, anyway.

 **~•~**

The next few days passed without much incident, which everyone was grateful for. No one had any breakdowns, the ship flew smoothly, and one by one, the passengers' moods began to steadily improve. Not by much, but it was definitely noticeable, especially in the twins. Han knew, of course, that they had every right to feel moody and upset, considering their current family situation. But he had to admit, he was happy to see them finally showing some signs of healing. And hope.

On day ten, Leia came sliding into the cockpit, smiling wider than usual. She plopped down in the copilot seat and sighed contentedly.

"Morning, Your Worship," Han greeted jokingly, glancing at her from the side.

"Good morning!" was her cheery reply. "It's a great day to be alive."

"Oh yeah? Why's that?"

Leia only laughed. Han turned to face her, crossing his arms across his chest. "No really, what's got you so happy?"

Still smiling, Leia leaned back and watched the passing stars outside. "Only four days left."

Han didn't understand why that was necessarily a good thing, because it meant they were that much closer to Vader. . .and the end of their time together, essentially. After all, once this last adventure was over, the twins would need to go home. But Leia was in a good mood, so Han didn't say anything that had the potential to jeopardize it. Instead, he forced a grin and said, "What, you didn't have fun these past few days?"

"This has been the longest trip of my life. Literally. It was draining."

"I dunno, it wasn't all bad," Han countered, waiting for Leia to look at him. When she did, he gave her a knowing smile. She returned it for the barest of seconds, then averted her gaze. But not before Han saw her cheeks turn pink. The kiss had not yet been discussed between them, but the knowledge of it was there. Even though it seemed like something that happened in some faint dream, both of them had the memory. Han had managed to sneak in a few subtle references in the past three days, and Leia had reacted the same way to all of them. She was cute when she was embarrassed.

"How's Luke doing?" Han asked. As fun as it was seeing Leia flustered, he wasn't going to push the matter any further. The subject change would ease the awkwardness a bit.

"He's. . .better, I think," Leia confirmed softly. "It's been hard, but he's talking to me more, and he doesn't look as. . ."

"Empty?" Han supplied.

"Yeah."

"Well hey, that's good, right? Glad you guys aren't letting it—well. Letting it drag you down."

Leia's smile had only faltered the slightest bit during that whole discussion, so she must've really been in a good mood. Han definitely wasn't opposed to it. He did understand why she was ready for the trip to end, though. Even with its good parts, the past week or so had seemed like an endless journey through infinite nothingness. To be honest, Han was looking forward to planting his feet on solid ground that _wasn't_ the floor of an airborne ship.

"So. How are things?" Leia asked, still watching out the window.

Han raised an eyebrow. "How d'you think? Things are. . .fine, I guess. Survivable."

He could feel Leia looking at him out of the corner of her eye. Her gaze felt intrusive. Questioning.

And he knew the words were coming before they were out of Leia's mouth.

"Are we. . .gonna talk about it?" the princess inquired uncomfortably, like this was a conversation she'd rather avoid. Clearly some part of her wanted to talk about it, though, or she wouldn't have said anything in the first place.

Han's first instinct was to say, "Talk about what?" but he resisted the temptation. Dang it. The line would've worked for any other conversation. But not this one. This one was more important. So, mustering all the bravery he could, he said, "I dunno. I didn't think you wanted to. . .ya know. Bring it up."

Leia played with her fingers, studying every nail. "I didn't at first. But now I—well I don't really _want_ to, but—if we don't talk about it. . .then did it really mean anything at all?" The last part came out quieter and more unsure.

Han chose his words very carefully.

"I guess you're right," he agreed.

"So? Did it?"

"Huh?"

"Did it—did it mean anything?"

Yes. _Yes_ it meant something. It meant _everything._ But Han wasn't sure how he could communicate that without coming across as too forward. But then again, if _he_ wasn't going to be forward about it, who was?

Wait, wait. This was happening too quickly. He needed some time to think, time to figure all this unfamiliar stuff out. If he came right out and said how he felt, Leia might be put off by it. The last thing he wanted to do was to overwhelm her even _more._ But. . .she was the one who asked.

"Never mind," Leia said flatly. "If you don't want to—"

"Yes!" Han blurted, throwing his hands in the air. Leia stopped mid-sentence and stared, waiting for him to say something else. He didn't.

"Y-yes?"

"Of _course_ it meant something, Your Worship! It still does! I just—I don't—" Han ended his outburst in a groan, rubbing his temples like he was getting a headache. Leia was still staring, unblinking. The room seemed too quiet. Too still. Too small.

"I don't know either," Leia whispered, looking everywhere but at him. "You say it means something, but _what_? What do we do now? I can't—it's not allowed. My parents can't ever know, because they'll object to the whole thing, and I'm going home soon, so what—"

"It doesn't matter." Han leaned closer, and Leia realized she was edging nearer to him as well, despite them being in different seats.

"But it _does_. They'd _kill_ me if they knew. And—I don't understand this, or how I feel, or how _you_ feel, and it's—"

Her rant was cut off by Han, closing the distance between them and pressing his lips against hers. For three whole seconds, Leia waited for it to feel different, but it didn't. She'd thought maybe the second kiss (if there ever was one, and now there was) would be less fiery, but she was wrong. There were still sparks and colors and all sorts of other things.

It was over too soon.

"You wanna know how I feel?" Han asked, intensely holding her gaze. " _That's_ how I feel."

Just like the first time, Leia didn't have the brainpower to form an intelligent sentence, so she said, "Me too." Whether it sounded good or not, at least Han smiled.

"We don't have to figure it all out right now. Right now, it—"

"It works."

Han couldn't argue.

 **~•~**

 **Day 12**  
 **Luke's Log**

 _I gotta say, I hate feeling this way, but it's not so bad anymore. When Leia first told me six days ago, it felt like my brain just melted into a puddle of blank space. But now it's not like that. She really knows how to put things in perspective, and suddenly things don't seem as bad anymore. It's kinda nice._

 _Han says we should be at our destination soon, or within the next couple days, anyway. That makes me happy, because we all know this trip was messing with our heads. Even Chewbacca looks done._

 _Normally I would go on and on about how tired and annoyed I am. But tonight hasn't been too terrible, even though I'm kind of ready to pass out from exhaustion. Other than that, I actually feel kind of excited. And also bummed. In a few days, I'll be on my way home (if Han can ever get this stupid hyperdrive fixed). Weird to think that a month or so ago, I was sitting in my house, not knowing about any of this. Literally oblivious to everything except the SAND OUTSIDE MY DOOR. I'm not sure if this is an improvement in most areas, but at least I have a sister now. Well, I always did._

"Luke!"

 _Speaking of sisters, mine is yelling for me. Better go see what that's all about. I'll leave this here for now._

" _Luke_!" came Leia's voice, louder this time. She had stopped waiting for him and was running in his direction at an impressive pace. She crashed into something and said " _ow_ " before careening into Han's room.

"Leia, what's—"

Panting, Leia held up a hand and leaned heavily against the doorframe. After a couple seconds, she looked at her brother and gave him a look that resembled panic.

"We're here."

 **A/N: There it is! Hope you guys enjoyed! Next chapter should be up soon! Have a great day!**

 **Drop a review if you're in the mood! :)**


	63. Chapter 63: I Understand

**A/N: Howdy fellas, and welcome back! Just a heads up: you're probably gonna be confused in this chapter. Like, a lot. But that's okay, because everything is more or less explained in the end, and everyone else is confused here too, so you'll fit right in! :p**

 **It's a weird one, that's for sure. This chapter took a lot of editing and revising and dividing (like the last one) and most of it was done at, like, 3-something in the morning...so...if there are any typos, just blame the sleep-deprived me that edited it. Okay? Okay. Ahhh the life of a high school student.**

 **Brief overview: the gang reaches Coruscant and sees Vader. And Leia has a breakdown. Or two.**

 **There is some perspective switches, and definitely a plot twist that might leave you feeling confused, but just bear with me. It's explained, I swear XD**

 **That said, ENJOY GUYS!**

"We're _here_? As in, _here_ here?"

Leia nodded emphatically, gesturing for Luke to follow her as she started down the hall again.

"Come see for yourself."

The two of them made it to the cockpit in record time and rushed to the viewport. If they could've got any closer, the twins would have pressed their hands to the glass and stared out like amazed toddlers. Luke's jaw dropped in awe.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Leia asked, wide eyes taking in every detail.

She was right. Coruscant wasn't just beautiful, it was _spectacular._ Much bigger than he ever could have imagined in his mind that was so used to the confining planet of Tatooine. Coruscant was the perfect picture of extravagance and opportunity and all kinds of things that Luke had never witnessed on his home world. The surface was dark in color and shone with hundreds— _thousands_ —of lights that seemed to move and sparkle and change every second.

The planet itself felt _alive._

If she allowed it, Leia could feel every single life and energy and force on the planet, breathing and moving and just _existing_ in general. She let herself feel it all for maybe a few seconds, then she shut it out. Her mind wasn't used to that much life in one place. It never used to feel that way on Alderaan, but then again, she hadn't unlocked this part of herself until recently.

Did Luke feel it, too?

There was another feeling buzzing around in the back of her head. Something more familiar than the general life force that every being typically had. Call her crazy, but Leia could've sworn she felt. . .the Force. Not _just_ the Force. Force-signatures, similar to her own and Luke's. They were brighter and more alive than any of the other ones down below.

 _Wow._

She'd never thought of that before. Other people existed that had the same power as she did. As Luke did. As _Vader_ did. They just might not realize the potential of it, which was probably a good thing if they weren't the responsible types. Other Force-sensitives lived in the galaxy, too. On Coruscant. Probably on Tatooine. Maybe even on Alderaan!

"Leia?"

She tuned back in, turning to look at Han.

"Yeah?"

"It's your call."

Realizing what Han meant, Leia glanced around at the cockpit, watching her brother and Chewie. Everyone had expectant expressions on their faces, waiting for Leia to give the verbal signal. To say they could go ahead and land.

For some reason, she suddenly felt as if she was under tremendous pressure.

"You ready?" Luke asked quietly from somewhere behind her. Without looking at him, she nodded. Han dipped his head in acknowledgment, pulling a lever that sent the _Falcon_ into a slow dive towards the surface.

Leia flopped back into the navigator's chair, letting out an anxious breath. This was real. This was happening. She was about to see Vader again.

Darth Vader.

Her father.

 **~•~**

Coruscant looked undeniably amazing from some distance, but the interior was hell.

To Leia, anyway.

It was like a holovid came alive.

Han had left the ship on a docking ramp high above the city. They had to travel across giant walkways that were suspended in the air, connecting buildings and platforms and all sorts of things. Shuttles and speeders and other hovercraft vehicles whizzed by in semi-orderly lines, moving so quickly but never crashing into each other (somehow). And the _people._ Leia had never seen so much species diversity in one place before, and to be honest, it was fascinating. Togrutas, blue-skinned Chagrian, wrinkly Clawdites (they were Changelings), Quarren with orange tentacles, and many others. Some she could identify, others she could not.

It was hard not to be distracted by all the colors and lights and sounds and movement, but they had somewhere to be. Leia wasn't quite sure _where_ they were going, but she could feel Vader's presence already. She was just following it, and eventually they would end up in the right place. As long as they stuck to the walkways, it would be fine.

After a while, Leia was getting annoyed by a weird thing Han was doing. Since she was following Vader's signature, she wanted to stay in front. It made sense. But Han kept sidestepping her and walking so close in front of her that she stepped on his heels multiple times. He never said anything about it, but it was all kinds of annoying.

"What are you _doing_?" Leia asked, running out of patience.

Han glanced around, hands stuck deep into his pockets. He kept his head hung low, and dark hair fell into his eyes (Leia thought it was attractive, in a way). But it was suspicious.

He replied, "Isn't your dad big in the Senate?"

Leia raised an eyebrow. "He's just a Senator."

" _Just_ a Senator? That means he knows people. He ever have his Senator friends around the palace?"

"Well, _yes_ —"

"Coruscant is the Imperial hub of the galaxy. If the wrong person sees you, we're in trouble."

 _Ohh._

Why hadn't she thought of that?

"Okay, well, why do you keep your head down like that?"

"Because the wrong people could see me, too. I might not be a princess, but people know who I am. Not everyone, but some. Especially in a place like this."

Leia decided not to question Han's past—she'd probably regret it. However, she _was_ starting to seriously wonder why she hadn't thought this through. Hadn't she learned her lesson about spontaneously launching headfirst into things like this?

Her paces a little quicker, Leia lowered her head the slightest bit as well and took a deep breath.

 _Just keep walking. Just keep walking._

 **~•~**

When they reached the right destination, Leia knew, because she felt all the tiny hairs on her arms and neck stand up. The throngs of people had thinned out and eventually disappeared altogether. She tilted her head back and gazed up at the monstrous structure that now obstructed her view of anything else. It was massive and dark and solid, with five ominous spires protruding from the very top—one peaked tower on every corner, and a taller one in the middle. Leia couldn't bring herself to look directly at the center spire; a deep darkness was coming from it. From the entire building, really.

"Where are we?" Leia breathed, becoming increasingly aware of how still and silent the surrounding area had become. They were the only people to be seen. The air felt thick and heavy and suffocating.

No one answered her for some reason. But something about this place was familiar. . .

And then it made sense. Well, some of it, anyway. She'd seen photos of the palace before, in textbooks and on the HoloNet. It was the absolute center of Imperial activity, located in the Federal District, deep in the heart of Galactic City. It used to be the Jedi Temple, before the Clone Wars, but Bail had told her once to never mention that fact. The Imperial Palace was the worst place one could be.

So how the _heck_ had she led them to it?

Shouldn't there be guards? _Any_ sort of security? Had they already passed them? How? That didn't make any sense. How had she got here so quickly? How long had they been walking?

Leia was very uneasy. Heart pounding violently, she reached for Luke's hand, but he wasn't there. Her other hand pressed against the palace's exterior. It stuck to the building like there was a magnetic pull keeping them together. Some odd sort of electricity buzzed through her, kind of like static, but stronger.

Leia had never felt so connected to something and yet want to escape from it so badly. (Except, maybe, for the idea of her real father.) Darkness always gave her trouble when she felt it, but this was a whole new level. Vader felt like the Dark Side. But this palace. . .it was complete saturated _evil._ She felt cold—a tingle started at the tips of her fingers and spread all the way up her arms. Her head ached and her stomach tied itself in a knot and her feet turned to ice and all at once, everything just seemed to _stop._

There was a man inside (how had she got inside?). Cloaked and hooded, he traveled slowly, yet somehow quickly. _Deliberately._ His face was hidden from her, but she didn't need to see it to know who it was. That presence was all too familiar.

 _Anakin._

Leia stepped backwards and suddenly she was falling, tumbling and flailing, looking for something to hold on to, but there was nothing. She collided with something solid—a floor. There were other people now. Small people. _Children._ Children in beige robes with little lightsabers that glowed blue. Leia lifted herself up, about to stand. Then she heard one of them speak (she couldn't make out what exactly they said). Next there was a snap and a hum, very close to her ears. Anakin moved forward—she saw him walk right past her like she wasn't even there. She tried to say something, _anything._ But he swung his lightsaber and one of the kids fell to the ground.

A shriek of terror wanted to rise out of her throat. She tried to let it. Nothing happened.

All she could do was scramble backwards in fear, watching as Anakin's lightsaber was just a blue blur in the air, leaving a trail of dead children in its wake. Her back hit a wall, and she wasn't in the palace anymore. There was fire. It was hot. _So_ hot. A kind of heat that penetrated her clothes instantly and made her feel like her very bones were on fire. Her breath came in ragged gasps.

She looked around and caught sight of Anakin again. And someone else. Something with beautiful long brown hair that hung down her back in a neat braid, and simple clothing that drew attention to her round, pregnant stomach. Leia shot to her feet.

 _Mom. . ._

"You're breaking my heart," the woman said, her voice cracking and wavering with every word. She was crying. "You're going down a path I can't follow!"

There was shouting. And anger. And someone who reminded her of Ben Kenobi, but much younger. Leia wanted to intervene. To say something. To yell and scream and curl up somewhere, and _where the heck was Luke—_

None of that mattered when her mother was clutching her throat and collapsing to the ground. Leia was crying but she couldn't hear herself, which made things worse because she didn't want to hear _this_ anymore. To hear the anger and hatred and death and evil.

Things got blurry. She heard lightsabers crashing together and her father yelling angry words and the young Ben yelling back. Anakin's anger was raw fury—she felt it. But young Ben's anger was different. It came from love and sounded much more _sad._ Leia grasped for something solid to hold but her hands always came up empty, like she was just clawing at air.

Leia tripped again and fell on her hands and knees. Rough, jagged rocks crumbled under her body's weight, and she felt the blazing heat of the magma that was dangerously close by. She was sobbing now, gasping for air and not understanding what was happening or where she was. A whizzing humming sound filled the air above her, and when she looked, she saw Anakin lying on the flaming ground, missing an alarming amount of limbs. Leia gasped.

"You were my brother, Anakin! I loved you!" young Ben cried, now standing very close to where Leia was kneeling.

" _I hate you_!" Anakin roared in rage, his voice sounding hoarse.

Leia didn't know when it happened really, but the fire licked Anakin's body, and suddenly he was on fire. Searing hot flames crept up his torso, burning and melting and scarring and—

All other things froze when Leia saw his eyes. The first time she'd seen the face of her real father. And he was a monster. She'd always imagined Anakin's eyes would look a bit like Luke's.

She was wrong.

They were yellow. _Yellow_. A piercing, disgusting yellow that was tinged with little red streaks, and the black of his pupil stood out like a gaping void into nothingness. Those horrible eyes looked right into Leia's, and she took the full force of the emotion behind them. It hit her like an earthquake. Her insides rattled. Her heart thudded against her ribs like a drum. The world spun around her and everything turned red and oh gosh, she was going to _puke—_

Leia felt drained of everything good in the universe. She felt his anger. Such an untamed, raw, passionate anger that burned under her skin. She felt his pain. The fire was eating him alive, burning every available area of skin, hair, and clothing. And among it all was a startling amount of guilt. Anakin felt _guilty._ It was a twisted sort of guilt, and in any other circumstances, Leia would've never understood it. But she could feel everything he did, which meant it made sense to her.

Anakin knew exactly what he was doing. The motivation behind his actions had not been inexplicable rage, but _love._ And now that he'd gone and done the work of evil, there was no turning back. He was in too deep. And he _knew._ He was mourning the loss of his old life. His happiness, his position as a Jedi, his friends. The life he could've had with his wife and unborn child (Leia was shocked to discover he was not aware of the _twins_ ). He longed _desperately_ to go back. To change everything and do things differently. But it was too late.

Leia had never cried harder in her _life._ As she lay there on the scorching rocks, listening to the pained screams of her father, something aligned in her subconscious. Things made _sense._ All that time ago, when she'd found the datapad with videos and photos of her on it. . .she asked Vader if the Empire was watching her. And he said no. But now that Leia understood, she knew the truth. Maybe the Empire hadn't been watching her, but _he_ was.

She looked so much like the love of his life. . .

He must've felt a connection, when they'd met during Leia's childhood. . .

He felt it when she touched the Light Side. . .

And the Dark. . .

As she grew, he saw himself in her. And that nagging feeling never went away that maybe, _maybe_ , he hadn't destroyed all of his hope. Maybe there was still something that could redeem him and _maybe_ that something was Leia. And so he planted droids or cameras or whatever he used—all so he could _see_ her. Because he saw himself _and_ Padmé in her. Because there was a thread of hope that Leia was the unborn child that he never got to know.

Those times she'd had that dream about Vader on Tatooine with her and her brother. . . All along, it had been _Vader_ wanting to be with _them._ He wasn't the "bad guy" in the dream. He was just fulfilling his own desire to have a family. Somehow, it was projecting to Leia, and she'd dreamt about what he envisioned.

The tears _poured_ down her cheeks, cascading like the waterfalls on Naboo. She didn't even bother to scrub them away anymore, none of it mattered. She felt empty. Emptier than when she'd found out that Vader was her father. This was a different kind of empty. That other emptiness was one that chiseled away at her defenses, slowly chipping and breaking it until she couldn't help but notice. This one didn't hesitate. It just bore a hole right through her, leaving a vacant dark space in her chest.

Her traumatized shrieks mixed in with those of her father. The heat intensified. She detached herself from Anakin's emotions; the Darkness was too great. Just before it could drag her under, Leia pulled herself away. Then she was on her feet again. The awful picture in front of her began to fade away, until Anakin's screams turned into someone else's.

Leia blinked, and the scene was different. Anticipation hung in the air. She saw young Ben again, and someone in familiar blue robes. . .

Her father. _Bail._ The person who _should_ be her father. The man she could always call her father no matter what. He was there, standing at a window, joined by others, but Leia couldn't see them very clearly. All she could really see was her mother, lying down, yelling and crying in pain. Then, before she could comprehend what was happening, there were babies. Two of them. They looked identical.

Padmé found her voice and named them both. Luke. Leia. The princess was so caught up in what was going on that she didn't even remember to be bitter about Luke being born first. What was wrong? Why did everyone still look so upset? Voices blended together, none of them clear, all of them worried. Leia only heard one phrase: "We're losing her."

She stumbled forward and was abruptly in the same room as Padmé and young Ben. Padmé was speaking breathlessly. "Obi-Wan," she said.

 _Obi-Wan?_

Leia got over the brief moment of confusion and tuned in to what her mother was saying.

"There is still good in him. I know it."

The hole in Leia's stomach managed to get even wider when Padmé was gone.

More hot tears stung in the corners of her eyes. Perhaps she'd cried too much already, or maybe she was too stunned to let the tears out, but they never did get any farther. Neither did Leia. She looked back to Ben (Obi-Wan?) and her breath hitched at the sight of the twins ( _her and Luke_ ) in his arms. That definitely explained a lot.

But her head was spinning and she felt sick. The room's sterile walls blurred into hazy streaks as everything flipped upside down. New voices rang in her ears.

"Where is Padmé? Is she safe?" Desperate. Hopeful. Guilty.

"It seems. . .in your anger, you. . .killed her." Satisfied. Devious. Evil.

And a yell of disbelief that shook the walls and the floor and maybe even the whole galaxy, because Padmé was gone, and she had taken Anakin's heart and soul with her.

That's when Leia's knees couldn't hold her up anymore, and she found herself making contact with the floor. More tears came. She was crying and screaming full force again. She wanted this all to just _stop_ —

"Leia. Leia! _Leia_!"

Her eyes flew open. Someone was kneeling in front of her, both hands extended to her shoulders. They gave her a little shake, not quite hard enough to hurt, but still firm.

"Is she okay?" someone else asked, sounding anxious.

Through her shuddering and sobbing and screaming, Leia blinked her eyes until she could see who was with her. It turned out to be Han who had his hands on her arms, and Luke was close by, hovering helplessly.

"Leia, what happened?" Han asked. His eyes held genuine concern, and he was using her real name again, which conveyed how serious he was. Kris understood this. But even as she tried to reply, or reassure them that she was okay, everything just came out as broken syllables and gasps. How could she possibly begin to explain what just happened? _She_ didn't even comprehend it all, so how could they? How would it affect Luke? Or Han? They wouldn't understand it.

She cried harder. For the first time, she looked around, and they were outside somewhere, no longer on one of the suspended walkways. They were all crouched and huddled together in some sort of docking bay. Maybe Han had brought them back to the _Falcon._

Never mind, she didn't really care. That was the least of her worries.

"Leia, I—"

All she could do was fall forward onto him, hanging on for dear life. Han's arms went around her immediately, but that was about all he was capable of. A wide eyed Luke layered himself on as well, looking for any opportunity to help.

Leia couldn't remember how long they stayed like that, holding tightly to each other, Han rubbing her back and Luke clutching one of her arms like it was his lifeline. With every passing second, the terrible images got farther and farther away, and eventually they weren't fresh anymore. She tried to occupy her mind with other things. Other thoughts. _Happier_ thoughts.

It was _just_ starting to work. Then, a light caught her eye, and Leia shifted her focus a little to the left. Not too far away, a shuttle touched down, sending dust and dirt flying in every direction. She squinted in an attempt to keep the tiny particles out of her eyes, but she also pulled away from the safety of her friends' embrace. There was another dreadful feeling settling in the pit of her stomach.

Han and Luke were watching the shuttle. Everyone was wishing for it to be a random stranger. But they knew who it was. Leia saw her brother clench his jaw in a way that he rarely did. It meant he was mad. Really mad.

The ramp lowered, and after a tense few seconds, a figure shrouded in Darkness exited the shuttle. At first, a chill shot through Leia's body. But then it turned into something that was most definitely stronger than a chill. It was freezing and painful and sharp. She grabbed her stomach. Han tensed. Luke swallowed.

Obviously it was Vader. No one else wore dark body armor like that, or a thick black cape, or a helmet that made him look like a freakish character out of nightmares. He carried a certain power in his walk, as though it was designed to strike fear into those that dare oppose him. Leia finally knew what exact purpose his armor served. It was sustaining his _life._

Everyone knew it was him. But no one said a word. Luke had gone perfectly still, perhaps frozen in shock. The shock that this _monster_ was his father. And Leia's. Except she wasn't even thinking about that. All she saw was the Jedi Padawans falling to the ground and her mother choking from Anakin's invisible grip. All she heard was screaming (Anakin's, Ben's, Padmé's, her own). All she felt was smothering heat, creeping closer and burning everything—

She looked around. There was no lava anymore. This was real life.

Vader was definitely coming towards them. He wanted to talk to them. To _her._ And only a few hours ago, she'd wanted to talk to him, too, if only to draw some closure from all the chaos. But now all she wanted to do was run. She _should_ run.

She didn't. Leia stood.

Even though her feet were practically numb and her knees were knocking together and her hands shook, Leia _stood._ She let Vader walk to her. Let him slow down and stop right in front of her. The entire galaxy looked like it was crashing and burning and breaking and swirling together, but she and Vader, standing in a few feet of blank space on the concrete, were immovable. He was the only thing in focus.

Her mind shut down. Or maybe it went into overdrive. Both felt the same, as of late. Either way, Leia frowned and remained silent, because she didn't know what to do or what to say.  
Compared to everything she'd just seen and witnessed, no matter how real it may have been. . .this felt so trivial. So temporary.

Leia was doing a good job of not crying, especially since she was currently reigning in a whole shipment of major trauma. She was staying strong. She promised herself, no matter how this went, she would go on acting the same way she always had.

Then, with his hand outstretched in a sad, almost _pleading_ way, Vader just _had_ to say—

"Daughter. . ."

~•~

There weren't enough words in the galaxy to describe how Vader was feeling. Not nearly enough. For years, he'd spent every minute of his spare time working on himself. Pushing down the Light. Accepting his new life for what it was. After all, he couldn't change it.

Therein lay the problem. Among all the desperate attempts to prove his dark fidelity to his new master, there was always that one little sentence that tripped him up. _He_ couldn't change it.

But someone else could.

It was his hope. He clung to that, gripping it and reminding himself of it every single day. That was why the Emperor never quite trusted him with _everything_ , because he could sense the tiny sliver of hope that Vader refused to surrender. But that was fine—it was the only thing that kept him going. After the death of his wife, Vader had sunk so low that not even he could remember who he was before that point. His life was changed forever.

Then he met Leia. Well, before he ever spoke to her, he was aware that she existed. It was a few years before he really knew that the Alderaanian Viceroy's daughter was adopted, and once he knew _that_ , the little nagging feeling never went away. He couldn't explain it. There was just a connection that he felt with the princess before he even met her, and once he _did,_ there was simply no going back.

The most obvious sign was her appearance. Even as a young child, Leia had resembled Padmé so much that Vader had trouble following what she was saying; he was too distracted. She thought like Padmé, too. Another dead giveaway. He just couldn't help himself. He planted microdroids in the palace, programmed to observe the princess from a safe distance. There were only a few. One in the entryway, one in the dining hall, things like that. He'd always been afraid that someone would find out, but they didn't.

Well. Leia did. Eventually. And he lied, which was in his nature but felt wrong for some reason.

And all the clues had just shown themselves along the path of the past few weeks. The evidence was all there. Their dad was Anakin Skywalker. . .he had _twins._

He'd meant to leave them on the Star Destroyer. To confront them there and present the options. They could stay there with him (of course they wouldn't want to, but he'd ask), or they could return to their respective home planets. But in a drastic change of mind, Vader went about his Imperial duties and ordered his crew to fly his Star Destroyer back to Tatooine. He didn't tell them that, but they'd figured it out anyway, like they knew he would. And the Emperor had been aboard for a short time, so the twins would need somewhere to go if escape was necessary.

Vader had orchestrated everything so well. At least, he'd _thought_ he did. Now there was some doubt. Instead of going back to Tatooine, the twins had followed him (somehow) to Coruscant, which had not been part of his follow-up plan at all. And _of course_ the Emperor was there as well, which defeated the whole purpose of Vader leaving them over Tatooine. It was like they didn't understand any of the logic behind his actions (taking after his teenage self, no doubt, so really it was kind of his own fault).

Being a parent was very stressful.

But once he felt the twins enter the atmosphere, he just knew he had to do _something._ Those kids were his hope, and they had no idea. He had been through hell, with only that _one_ speculation keeping his sanity from crumbling altogether. Someone might be able to change him. He had kids. He needed them to understand.

He had reached out without really thinking about it. His consciousness found Leia's, and he pushed forward, flooding her mind with memories of his own. It would hurt her, probably. She'd never be able to forget what she saw. And to be honest, Vader hadn't wanted her to know what happened or how he became the present-day monster of a man. But at least now she understood.

The twins needed to go home. To live normal lives as normal teenagers with normal families. He wanted them to have those things. Which were the only things he couldn't give them. He was willing to let them go. They might take his hope with them, because would they ever come back? Not likely. But he would rather live knowing they were happy.

He just wanted to see them one last time.

~•~

"What do _you_ want?" Han snapped. Leia barely heard him, but she knew he was directing it at Vader. Her father. Who was standing _very_ close. Looking _very_ forlorn.

The Dark Lord didn't answer. He just stood there, feet planted on the hard ground, his mask making odd mechanical noises as he breathed. The armor was there. The helmet and gloves and boots and chest panel and dark suit. But all Leia saw was Anakin, scared and angry, looking at her with those wild yellow eyes. Except, this time, they didn't look evil or filled with hate. Just empty and tired. And lost.

Luke peeked out from behind her, casting a careful glance at the man who called himself his father. He wasn't afraid anymore. Vader didn't look hostile at all. His tall figure seemed so awkward and out of place in the near-empty lot of docked ships.

"Why?" Leia choked out, immediately biting down on her bottom lip. That meant she was forcefully holding back tears.

Leia was asking about a lot of things. Why did he betray the Jedi? Why did he hurt his wife? Why did he slaughter children? Why did he leave to join the Empire? Why did he fight Ben? Why did allow himself to get so deep into the Darkness? Why had he never come back? Why, why, why, why.

"For her," he said, low voice sounding pained. "For you."

He'd quite literally sold his soul for Padmé and his unborn child (children). He loved them so much that he was willing to do anything to protect them. Leia still didn't know what the motivation had been (had Padmé been in some danger while pregnant?), but she understood. Kind of. In a weird way.

She was vaguely aware of Han and Luke somewhere behind her, and they were most definitely dealing with their own conflicts at the moment. Leia wished she could be helping Luke right now, but there was too much happening in her head.

Somehow she found herself on her knees. Her eyes were on the ground, not Vader.

"You—you're my father. You're my _dad_." A forbidden tremble was laced through her tone, which she cursed. But she continued. " _You._ The man who betrayed every friend he'd ever had. You murdered _innocent kids._ You let the Dark Side eat you alive. You devoted your _life_ to destroying every ounce of the good the galaxy has left, all because you ruined your _own_ life!"

Leia looked up at Vader—Anakin—her father—whatever she was supposed to call him. She wanted to see the hero. She wanted to see the man who saved lives and kept people's _hope_ alive. But instead, she saw the broken spirit of a human being who knew he was too far gone. Ironic, kind of. How he had saved so many lives but couldn't save his own.

"She believed there was good in you," Leia whispered, eyes sliding back to the hard ground. "She wanted you to come back."

This startled Vader. The images he'd allowed Leia to see had not included this particular bit of information. He had a good idea of who she was talking about, but he had to be sure.

". . .Padmé?"

A beat. "Yeah."

"What did you see?"

Leia bit down on her bottom lip and searched the concrete for an answer. She'd seen a lot of things, but Vader must've been asking about her mother. All those pictures and memories had been his. . .or at least, that's what she'd thought. Maybe they weren't.

"I saw—there was a room. And—and medical droids. And our mom was yelling and she was in pain. . .then I saw—" she glanced at Luke, "—I saw _us._ And then she was gone."

Vader's heart stopped. Not only was that a terrible thing to imagine witnessing, but there was something stirring on the inside of him, like the rough grinding of sandpaper. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

He didn't kill his wife. On Mustafar. His control had been lost, and he'd—

She hadn't died then. The Emperor had said—

Vader's head was going to spin right off his shoulders. How had he not understood this before? If he had two children, it was _obvious_ that Padmé had lived, at least long enough to give birth. All those years of suffering, he'd been so blinded by confusion and lies that he hadn't stopped to lay out the facts to make sense of things. So if she hadn't died because of him. . .

"They said they didn't know why," Leia said, an odd look on her face. She could hear him? For how long had this been possible?

And Padmé had not died because of him. At least, he hadn't actively done anything to physically harm her to the point of death. That knowledge was enough to flood him with relief that he didn't know he needed. Wow. Leave it to him to ignore the most obvious logical conclusions.

"I—" There was a lot he wanted to say. But words failed him yet again.

Luckily, his daughter had no trouble speaking.

"I know the galaxy sees you as—as a monster. I used to think they were right. Maybe they _are_. But—I don't _just_ see a monster anymore. I think. . .I think I understand."

A new dawn of acceptance spread across Leia's face. She really _did_ understand. She wasn't afraid anymore. This was the moment she'd been waiting for, for an entire month. It had all been leading up to this day, this second, this final confirmation. Leia had imagined it for a long time. In her head, she always rushed to hug her father, just because she _could_ , and she knew that this man wasn't a lost cause, and there was hope, and she and Luke could _change_ him. Just like their mom always wanted. Maybe they could be a family, and be happy together, and Luke could learn how to pilot and Leia—

No. None of that was going to happen. There _was_ hope, but it just didn't feel the same as it always did in her vivid imagination. It was the kind of hope that came with _wanting_ something so badly but knowing it's too good to ever actually happen. Resignation was a terrible thing. But a necessary one, all the same.

Vader knew, too, what had to happen. The twins had to leave. This was it. Leia had come to see him one final time before she had to return home and shove all of this knowledge to the very back, dark corner of her brain. Same for Luke. They could never speak of this to anyone. If the Alderaanian people discovered their princess was a descendant of the Dark Lord. . .he winced just thinking about it.

Then he remembered he was supposed to be evil. This went against everything he'd drilled into his head for the past fourteen years. All his hard work to stay isolated and cold and empty (because being empty felt better than having emotions)—it was going down the drain. He couldn't allow himself to let in too much Light; the twins weren't the only ones with lives to uphold. Nothing would be different after they left. He would carry on with his regular duties and his obedience to his master.

His heart (what was left of it) skipped a few beats when he felt a hand in his.

Leia had reached for his hand, and since she was shorter and nervous and didn't know how he'd react, it wasn't exactly comfortable. Her hand kind of rested on his fingers that hung limp at his side—she didn't feel human flesh under the glove. It was hard. Like. . .metal. She risked a questioning glance at her father.

"I am more machine than man," Vader explained darkly.

Leia pondered that for a moment.

She finally mumbled, "Not to me."

Vader knew when it was time for them to leave. He moved his hand away and placed it on her shoulder—the action was slow, unsure. But Leia didn't back away.

"Goodbye, daughter," was Vader's hesitant farewell. He looked like he wanted to say more, but something stopped him. His hand went back to his side. Leia missed it immediately, even though she probably shouldn't.

Han's hand replaced Vader's on her shoulder.

"Let's go," he urged gently. But Luke emerged from behind them.

"I'm still mad at you," he directed at Vader. The Sith lord inclined his head in understanding.

Luke continued. " _But_. . .I'm learning about forgiveness. And—well, I don't know if I forgive you yet. But someday I will. And no matter what, Anakin is always gonna be my hero."

It was the most profound thing she'd ever heard Luke say. She was proud of him. And Vader seemed amused, in a somewhat bittersweet way.

The trio faced Vader one last time. He nodded at them. And Leia just couldn't help herself.

"May the Force be with you," she said, so soft it was almost a whisper. For a second, it looked like Vader wasn't going to reply. Then he surprised them all.

"And with you."

It took every bit of strength in her body to walk away.

 **A/N: Oof, I'm tired as heck and trying to get this puppy online ASAP. But hey, what didja think? Probably not the giant sparkly redemption some of you were hoping for, but this is a bit more realistic. At least, I think so. These guys are a mess, though, geez. They stress me out XD**

 **Have an awesome week! And drop me a review if you wanna!**


	64. Chapter 64: Up and Down and Up Again

**A/N: Hey home slice, what's new? It's been a bit...where do I begin?**

 **So, sorry to, like, dump this on you so abruptly, but...**

 **After this chapter that you're reading right now, there are only two left. One is the final closing chapter, and the other is an epilogue. Both should hopefully provide the necessary elements of closure and all that jazz, and they were some of the hardest ones to write. There's a lot going on in these last few installments of MLAL, so get ready.**

 **A message to my readers (if I actually have any at this point lol):**

 **Thanks for sticking with this story for so long! I know it's not all over yet, but I wanted to throw this in here anyway. I started this story when I was 13, and it was based off of a flimsy idea that I had and wanted to write. The world of fanfiction hadn't occurred to me until that point, but I knew I wanted to try it. And now, three years and a million revisions later, here we are.**

 **If you've been here since the old days, you the real MVP and I give you all my Internet cookies. If you joined in somewhere in the middle, I hope you're still reading! And for those of you that are brand new, please note that the early chapters are somewhat cringey and weak because I was 13 and not very good at writing XD**

 **I'll save the rest of my spiel for the final chapter, but thanks guys! If you've never reviewed before on this story, feel free to do so now! Lol, I'm curious to know what everyone thinks and if maybe anyone would be interested in a sequel...?**

 **Just lemme know your thoughts down below :) And without further ado, enjoy chapter 64.**

Back on the _Falcon_ , Leia was struggling to sort out her thoughts. The whole thing—the visions (was that what they were?), the feeling she was left with, how it had happened so _fast_ —

All things considered, Leia was surprised she wasn't completely crazy by now.

Never in her life had she _ever_ believed this would happen to her. Glimpses of Vader's better side were so rare that Leia felt deeply honored to have been there when one happened. And not just that. It had been because of _her._ Somehow, she had managed to connect with the most feared man in the galaxy and make him _feel_ something. Something good. At least, she hoped it was good.

Leia was no fool. She understood that Vader was stuck (for now, anyway) in his current way of life, and she couldn't just drag him away and expect things to change. That was immature and unrealistic. After the past month and everything she'd done and seen. . .the real universe was a lot more cutthroat than she'd previously thought. Things didn't always work out the way you wanted them to.

But even knowing that hadn't helped the new hole in her chest. Vader was ruthless and angry and quite possibly the scariest person she'd ever met. But he was still her dad, and that meant she _did_ care about him. To an extent. She was still figuring it out.

She slid further down in her seat, watching out the cockpit window as Coruscant got farther and farther away. How had such a pretty planet turned out to be so deceiving? Bail went to Coruscant all the time, and Leia would often beg to come with him. . .and he always insisted she stay home. Maybe this was why. If politicians had to go there all the time, maybe she'd find another occupation—

"You doing okay?" Han asked, glancing over at her carefully.

By way of reply, Leia shrugged. It wasn't her being lazy—she really _didn't_ know whether she was okay or not. It felt like her heart was being ripped into tiny little pieces.

"I'm going home," she said. The words were not a question. They formed a statement. Not a happy one, either.

She could hear the aching tone in Han's voice when he said, "Yeah. I guess you are."

Leia didn't know that five small words could carry such a tremendous weight. She couldn't believe it. After all that time spent together, their little group might not ever see one another again.

 _Group._ She didn't like that word anymore. She liked _family_ better. It was weird how certain words had changed for her over the past month. Words she thought were good had turned bad. And bad ones had turned good. A few stayed the same, but like most things in her life, a lot of them changed.

 _Vader_ turned into _father._

 _Luke_ turned into _brother._

 _Pilot_ had turned into _Han_ , and she was waiting for _Han_ to change as well (maybe into _boyfriend_ ), but that was still unsteady territory. She'd worry about it later.

 _Alderaan_ used to mean _home_ , but now _home_ felt like the _Falcon._ Maybe that would go back to normal once she returned to her planet.

Even _Ben_ had turned into _Obi-Wan_ , which she would have to ask about someday. What else hadn't he told her?

Some people might say that Leia was far too young to be dealing with these things. Complex emotions and shifting mindsets were usually things that you didn't handle until you were an adult. Leia wondered if her parents (her _adoptive parents_ , who she loved more than anything) had ever passed through a stage like this before. But they always seemed so calm and collected. There's no _way_ they'd ever been as messed up as this. And if they were, they probably would've known the perfect way to deal with it.

Han didn't know what to say (he never did, when it came to Leia). So he settled for something he felt comfortable with: casual pilot talk.

"While we were out, Chewie got the hyperdrive up and running again. The trip back shouldn't take more than a night. Maybe less."

"Oh."

"I figured we'd stop back on Tatooine first, drop Luke off. You guys can. . .spend some time together before we head out."

"Okay."

"Then I guess I'll fly you back after that. Shouldn't take long, since the hyperdrive's fixed. Sound good?"

It didn't. As much as Leia missed her mom and dad, things would never feel the same now that she'd experienced life beyond Alderaan. There would constantly be so much on her mind, things about her brother and the Force and _Vader_. . .and she would never be able to confide in anyone about it. If her parents know about _any_ of it, the consequences would be so great that Leia didn't even want to think about them. She didn't _want_ to go home. Not yet. There was still so much she wanted to do and see and learn. . .

What if she was leaving things unfinished or unresolved? What if she never got the opportunity to sit in Luke's room again, or watch the Suns set on Tatooine, or—

She couldn't think about it. She'd go insane if she did.

"Yeah. Sounds like—like a plan."

That night, Leia went looking for her brother. Soon they would have to leave each other (maybe forever), so it only made sense to spend as much time together as possible while they still could. It was late, so her first thought was that Luke was asleep, in which case she probably wouldn't wake him up. Thankfully, she found him sitting on Han's bed, typing away on her datapad (she didn't quite understand his fascination with it).

"Hi," she said lamely, climbing up next to him. His eyes traveled to hers for a second, and he smiled.

"Hey."

"So. . .we're going home. And I wanted to—well, I thought we should hang out. Before. . .you know."

Luke nodded slowly, gazing distantly at the far wall. It was unusual for him to be so quiet, but he was probably feeling just as upset as she was. She'd never considered that Luke might not want to go home, either.

"Crazy, huh?" she asked, forcing out something that resembled a laugh.

"What's crazy?"

" _Everything._ We're twins. Our father is alive. We have weird mysterious powers. Who knew, right?"

"Ha, yeah. The past month has been. . .a lot."

Some silence.

"You're not still mad, are you?" Leia asked.

"Mad about what?"

"What happened on Coruscant. You looked. . .I don't know. Angry, kind of."

"What? No, I wasn't _mad._ I just—I didn't know what to do. Everything's happening so fast. It's like the universe is speeding up but I'm still going slow. Like I can't keep up."

"Yeah, I know the feeling."

"And. . .well, you're leaving. What am I supposed to do then? Pretend you don't even exist? I couldn't do that, not even if I _tried._ And what if we never see each other again? I can't—I can't just go on like none of this ever happened. Like it doesn't mean anything to me. Because it does!"

"I know. Believe me, I'm not ready for it, either."

There was a lot she wanted to say, but then Leia remembered something.

"Oh my gosh, I can't believe I almost forgot!"

Interested, Luke raised an eyebrow. "What now?"

"Well, remember how we're twins?"

"Uh. Yeah?"

"And remember how we have the same birthday?"

"Leia, _obviously_ we—"

"Well guess _what_!"

Wearily, Luke shrugged. "I don't know. What?"

" _Today_ is that day."

"Wait, _what_!"

Leia laughed and jostled Luke's shoulder.

"It's our first birthday we ever spent _together_! How cool is that? _And_ , I got you something."

"Leia, you didn't have to—"

"Ah-ah-ah! Let me finish. I didn't buy it. It's more like a. . .souvenier. From that time you started a fire in the Star Destroyer."

Luke remembered that day very well. They'd both been a little reckless during that time. Leia was always running off to agitate stormtroopers and Luke started a huge fire (accidentally) with a blaster. And then they'd got to have fun and initiate absolute chaos with the troopers. Riding on their backs and turning the lights on and off. . .

Good times.

He watched as Leia dug around in her satchel and finally pulled out some sort of book, the cover faded and worn. She ran her hand across it as a way of dusting it off, and when she was satisfied, she held it out for Luke.

More curious than anything, Luke took the book from her and held it with both hands. The cover felt kind of soft under his touch, like leather. Slowly, Luke flipped it open—the pages were blank. It took him a second to figure it out, so Leia supplied the answer.

"It's a journal! You're always using mine or typing on my datapad, so I picked this up a while ago for you. Now you can have your own journal to use when I—um, when I'm not around."

Once he understood, Luke's face broke out in a smile. His life being what it was, gifts weren't something he received often. His aunt and uncle usually got him something small on his birthday, or maybe if he did really well during the harvest season. More often than not, their gifts were similar. Models of ships. A treat from town. Something easy. And Leia's little present was just a journal. A blank book that he was supposed to write in. And yet, it meant more than anything he'd ever received in his life.

Leia seemed nervous. "I know it's kind of weird. Maybe once I get home I can find something better. It might be sorta hard to send it to you, but I can—"

Laughing, Luke stopped her with his hands out. "Leia, no. I love it. Like really _really_ love it."

"Honestly?"

" _Yes_ , honestly. This is the beat thing you could've given me." Then he paused, panicking. "Oh _no._ I didn't get _you_ anything! With everything going on, I didn't even remember today was our _birthday_!"

Leia was the one laughing now. She shook her head. "It's fine, I don't need anything. To be honest, I wasn't thinking of our birthday when I found the book."

But Luke didn't look content with that answer. He sat there frowning at the blankets and contemplating a new idea taking shape. Even if Leia said she didn't need anything (it was true—she was _royalty_ and therefore not exactly lacking in things), Luke _wanted_ to give her something. Just because he could. But they were on their way to Tatooine, and once they arrived, he really wouldn't have much to work with. Not that there was much to work with on the _Falcon_ , either. . .

 _Wait a second._

"Do you still have that hanger?" he asked excitedly, leaning forward.

Leia blinked. "What?"

"The hanger! The wire hanger you made me find on Vader's ship? You said you needed it for something. What did you need it for?"

"Oh, _that_. You know, I'm not really sure. I just had a feeling that someone might need it. Not necessarily _me._ Why?"

"Where is it?"

"Luke, what—"

He reached around Leia and pulled her satchel from where it hung across her shoulder.

"Hey! What are you—"

Luke had already dug through the whole bag and yanked out the misshapen wire, now bent into some unidentifiable oblong shape. Leia didn't try to reach for it, but she gave him an expectant look.

"Can I have this?" he said simply.

"I—" Then she gave up trying to argue. "Sure."

Luke was still pulling things out of her satchel. A few of Han's weird tools now sat on the bed, along with a dusty pebble and the hanger. As Luke observed the objects, something about his expression shifted.

"What is all this?"

"Um. . .I don't know. That's a rock from Tatooine, and the tools are—uh, they're. . ." Her face twisted into confusion. "Why _do_ I have those? I don't even know what they do."

"Can I have these, too?"

"Well—I _guess_ , but not the rock. I wanna keep that. Just. . .to remember you by. I don't know."

"That's exactly my point." Luke grabbed everything and hopped off the bed.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"Not to bed, that's for sure!" And he took off down the hall.

Leia was left sitting cross legged on the bed, staring at the doorframe in bewilderment. She wasn't sure how the conversation had taken that turn, but at least Luke had liked the journal.

 **~•~**

Luke came out of the cargo hold an hour later, grinning like crazy and refusing to tell Leia what he had been doing. Eventually she just dropped the matter in hopes that he'd tell her before they had to be separated again.

Some sort of odd energy kicked in at a very late hour, and the twins couldn't sleep for the life of them. Maybe it was the knowledge that soon they'd have to readjust to a life without each other, or maybe it had just been too long since they'd relaxed. But either way, Han decided sleep wasn't worth the effort since Luke and Leia were dashing around making noise.

He sat alone in the cockpit (Chewie had gone to lie down somewhere hours ago), staring blankly into hyperspace and biting down on the knuckle of his thumb. The kaleidoscope of blue swirls was soothing in a way. A welcome distraction from the latest events of his life.

He liked Leia. A lot. And if it were up to him, she wouldn't have to go back to Alderaan. But that was stupid and unrealistic and absolutely _not_ a way he should be thinking, because the girl had an entire planet that was counting on her. She had people that needed her and loved her. People that weren't Han. And he was extremely jealous of them, because they got to keep her and he didn't.

Normally, people didn't stick around for very long in Han's life, but that was okay. He didn't stick around in _other_ people's lives, either. Call him paranoid, but Han couldn't help but feel like anyone could turn around and betray him at any moment. This mindset tended to install an unhealthy amount of trust issues in him, and therefore, he pushed people away. Not just because he was paranoid. Personal experience had taught him more than anyone knew.

Leia was different. She was younger than him, but for the most part, it never seemed that way. She'd dealt with more emotional distress in the past month than Han had in the past five _years_. And through it all, she'd stood as firm as ever. Sure, he'd seen her break down a few times, but for some reason, that made her look even stronger. How many other people could handle that much and not be completely insane? It was like she was made of steel. On the outside, anyway.

It was hard to imagine life without the twins. Han liked to think they'd all become good friends over the course of the past month, and even though he sometimes wanted to strangle them, they occupied a special place in his heart (not that people should go around assuming he had a heart—he couldn't have that). If he'd ever had a brother, Han wished he would've been just like Luke. And Leia. . .well she was another level entirely.

The twins' excited voices carried down the hall, getting closer. Soon they were stumbling into the cockpit, shaking with laughter.

"And then I dumped the whole _bucket_ on him!" Luke exclaimed. "You should've seen the look on his face. It was _priceless_."

Han didn't ask what they were talking about, but he assumed Luke was telling some exotic story from his time on Tatooine. Leia was laughing. When they saw Han sitting there, their moods dimmed a little, but not really enough to show. All night, they'd been trying to make the most of their last trip together, and Han reminded them of what was happening in reality.

"Glad you guys are. . .having fun," Han commented with a half-smile.

Leia returned his grin and parked herself in the copilot seat.

"Yeah. We just never get to really be _kids_ , so we figured we might as well try while we have the time. Before. . .well. You know."

It was such a sobering topic, but Leia said it cheerfully. Like she was fooling herself into being happy about it.

"Hey, guess what," Luke said, poking Han's shoulder. The pilot raised his eyebrows.

"What?"

"It's our birthday today."

Leia nodded in excited affirmation. "We're fourteen now."

 _Whoa_.

He knew Leia had mentioned when her birthday was at some point, but he hadn't expected it to be so soon. She was fourteen. They both were. Just like that, Han felt different. The whole atmosphere in the cockpit felt like it had been shifted. Considering the events of the past few days, it was a surprise Leia was happy about her birthday at all.

"Happy birthday," Han said, trying to sound upbeat.

"Thanks!" the twins chorused. It was weird. Almost as if everyone in the room was individually pretending to be cheerful, but each person _knew_ the others were pretending, too. Seemed kind of pointless, but things could be worse. At least they weren't making a narrow escape or fending off dark forces or any other mortal peril. At least they were safe.

 **~•~**

When the peppy energy dissolved into exhaustion, the twins headed off to bed. Luke, ever the innocent one, fell asleep almost immediately. And so did Leia. Except unlike her brother, Leia didn't stay asleep for very long.

 _Anakin clawed at the molten rock and ash that surrounded them, desperately trying to avoid the rising flames. Magma crawled up the incline, burning, charring, killing, destroying._

 _"You were my brother, Anakin! I loved you!"_

 _"I hate you!" It was inhuman, the way he said it. He spat the words out in an animalistic growl, full of the most vile hatred and ferocity._

 _And the eyes met hers, boring straight through her, penetrating her mind, enveloping her from all sides. Yellow and dead. Leia always thought dead eyes would look cold, but Anakin's were warm. Warm with fire and passionate fury. They were_ _ **blazing**_ _. She couldn't look away. She wanted to, but somehow she was stuck. And while Leia was caught staring straight into those fiery pits, all she could hear was the pained screams of her birth mother and at the end, someone yelled out a jarring, "Leia!"_

She shot up in bed with a choked gasp, chest heaving with ragged, strangled breaths. Grasping the blanket with both hands, Leia turned around and made sure she was really awake. It looked like Han's room, but was it?

She tried to focus on her senses. The bed felt soft and bouncy underneath her. Han's room smelled a bit metallic with hints of something warm and musky and pleasant. Next to her, Luke was asleep, breathing calmly and evenly, unaware of what was happening right beside him. All around were the faint sounds of the hissing of pipes and a few clanks every now and then.

It was the _Falcon_. She was okay.

But now that she was awake, the images wouldn't leave her alone. They flashed back up every time she closed her eyes, and the darkness of the room only made things worse. Somewhere deep inside her, she felt a stirring. Like the Darkness itself was awake now, too.

Sleep was thereby a lost cause, so Leia quickly scurried out of bed, out the door and down the passageway. She didn't know where she wanted to go or what she was going to accomplish by going there, but eventually the princess ended up in the main hold. And there, awake and sitting slumped on the round sofa, was Han. He jumped a little when he saw her, which made sense since it was late and she was supposed to be asleep. But he didn't look angry. He just tilted his head in a question, silently asking her what was wrong.

All shyness or caution disappeared as Leia crawled up next to him and met his eyes. They were concerned, watching her uneven breathing and shaking hands. He scooted closer.

"Everything alright?"

Leia shook her head. "No."

"Why? What's wrong?"

"I—when we were on Coruscant, I saw—I saw him."

"Who?"

Leia swallowed. Her throat felt dry and tight. "Anakin. I saw him hurting people and fighting his friends and—and I saw _him_ in pain, and—"

"Whoa, whoa. Slow down. You saw _Anakin_? How?"

"I—I don't know. It was a vision, I think. Maybe. Kind of. Vader—he _let_ me see it. Those were _his_ memories."

Thoroughly confused, Han rested his arms on the game table and thought about that.

On Coruscant, he, Luke and Leia had departed from his ship (Chewie had offered to stay and keep watch) and headed out in the direction of the main city. They'd talked for a while about where they might be going, because Leia was leading them and hadn't the slightest clue where the "Force" was taking her. After a while, Leia shut down entirely and refused to answer any of their questions or talk to them at _all._ Luke only said that she did that sometimes when she was focused on something, but Han was suspicious.

He was even _more_ suspicious when the group ended up back at the lot of ships where they'd landed the _Falcon._ When Han had asked what they were doing there, Leia didn't reply. Instead, she'd collapsed to the ground and put both hands on her head. She was crying. Way harder than he'd ever witnessed before, which was saying a lot. He and Luke tried talking to her, but it was like they weren't even there. Leia was either ignoring them or just didn't feel their presence next to her at all.

Han had been afraid she would start screaming, but she didn't. Not really. For a maximum of a few seconds, she'd screamed out something, but he couldn't tell if it was words or just emotion. He and Luke had practically gone crazy trying to shake her out of it, and when she finally snapped back to reality, Vader had showed up moments later.

Han realized he never had asked her about that.

"Hey, can I talk to you about something?" he questioned carefully, angling his head to look at her. Something about her expression was scared, but overall, she just looked tired.

Leia nodded. "Okay."

"Back down there, what did we do?"

"What?"

"I mean, what do you _remember_ about Coruscant?"

Leia allowed herself a moment to think, because the memories all tended to stick together and get lost entirely. They'd started off to the city, and she remembered a few conversations. . .

"We were walking, and then you told me I should be careful because people might recognize me."

"Right. . .anything else?"

"And—and then you said people might recognize you, too."

"Okay. . ."

"And we all kept going for a really long time, but it didn't _feel_ like that long, and then I—I was at the Palace." Han knew which palace she was talking about. Nearly everyone in the galaxy knew of the Palace (capital "p") and who ruled there. The Dark Palace. The home of Emperor Palpatine.

Leia continued. "I tried to find you guys, but you weren't there. And then—that's when I saw—" She broke off abruptly and looked down at her lap, afraid to keep going. Talking about it made the visions seem too real. Like she'd actually witnessed them.

"Leia, we never went to the Palace."

Her eyes narrowed. She reached up to press her palms against the sides of her head, sighing.

"I—I know. You didn't. But _I_ did. Sort of."

"What did you see?"

"I saw my parents. My birth parents. And—" All the images came flooding back, and as much as Leia wanted to tell Han everything, she couldn't. He was being so open and willing to help, but she couldn't say the words.

She whispered, "I can't."

Somehow she'd gotten close enough to Han to see every detail. Every curve of his jaw. Every line of his lips. The tiniest flecks of gold in his dark eyes, and all the little faded scars scattered across his face. She liked being this close to him. It made him feel more real, and less like an illusion that she'd created in her own mind. She needed that one thing that was real.

"Today is more than just my birthday," Leia said, tone low and a little hoarse, like she'd been crying. "It's the day my mother died. And the day my father died—on the inside. Everything changed for me on this day, and I wasn't even old enough to realize."

"Don't you think it was better that way? At least you were adopted by a family that cares about you. They tried to keep all this information away from you so you could be happy."

"Yeah—but if I'd known sooner. . .I don't know. It just doesn't _feel_ like my birthday. Or Luke's. There's nothing to celebrate. We lost everything the first day we were born. Our mom, our dad, each _other_. . ."

She tapered off when her voice cracked and betrayed the hint of sadness peeking through. Her head fell onto Han's shoulder out of instinct, and he let it. His hand found hers and squeezed it. Leia decided she liked his hands, too. They were rough and calloused, like a pilot's hands probably should be. But they were also warm and comforting and sent trails of electricity up her whole arm.

"I see it this way," Han finally said. "Forget all that other stuff. Don't think about it. Focus on the things that happened that were good. Like. . .you and Luke being born. Your mom stayed strong long enough to get you guys into the universe. She cared about you."

"I know."

"And you were put in a family that loves you more than anything. So now, you can pick up where your mom left off. You can use your voice for good. Maybe give some people a little of their courage back."

"Maybe. . ."

Han slid his thumb down the side of her hand. "Think of it as. . .a day of hope. Not loss."

"But now I'm losing you, too."

Han's head jerked up sharply, and he glanced down to catch Leia's expression. She wasn't joking.

"You're not losing me."

"Yes I am. In the morning, you're flying me home and we won't ever see each other again. I'll grow up and become Queen, and you'll—"

"I'll what?"

Leia curled up tighter until her knees touched her chin. She gripped Han's hand even tighter.

"You'll forget about me."

The words carried such a painful weight that Han thought he might cry.

"Leia, that's crazy. I won't ever forget about you."

"How do you know? There's lots of other girls out there. Girls that are prettier and better and that have way less complicated lives. Girls that can't do weird things with their mind. Girls that are normal."

Han laughed shortly and jostled Leia's shoulder.

"Yeah, maybe. But I don't care about them. I care about you, Your Worship." The nickname wasn't teasing. It was affectionate.

Reassured, Leia managed to crack a soft smile. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"I care about you too, Flyboy."

Leia wasn't expecting Han to plant a kiss on the top of her head, but she wasn't mad when he did.

She didn't know how long they sat there like that, but it almost didn't even matter. That was the great thing about being with Han—they didn't always need words to communicate. Sometimes they could just sit in silence, content to be near one another. Being around him cleared her mind.

Eventually, the two of them drifted off to sleep, Leia's head resting on Han's shoulder, and his hand in hers.

 **A/N: Their relationship is the cutest (and also extremely complicated to write).**

 **Well, next chapter is the last full one. Then comes the epilogue! What do you guys think? Again, if you're feeling a little wild, leave a review or comment down below! I appreciate constructive criticism or encouragement :) I know the story isn't perfect, but I'm proud of how it's all come about. Can't wait for you guys to see the end, even if it is kinda bittersweet.**

 **Until next time!**


	65. Chapter 65: At Journey's End

**A/N: Well folks, here we are. The final chapter of My Life as Leia. I gotta admit, this feels weird for me. Like dang, I've been at this thing for a solid three years, and granted, it's improved a bit since then. I started the story with one single chapter that was like 1,000 words long, and there was absolutely ZERO plot that went along with it. Like, I had no idea where I wanted the story to go. Turns out, it went a lot of ways, haha.**

 **Thanks to everyone who followed or favorited or commented or left reviews. Thanks to all my readers on Wattpad and everybody on FFN :) You're all awesome. Whether you started reading from day one or you jumped in somewhere recently, THANK YOU. I appreciate you! All of you!**

 **Hopefully you've enjoyed the story and this different look at the characters. Writing an AU was tough, especially since I knocked the characters down to different ages, but I hope you liked reading it! Who knows, maybe you've gotten just as attached to these dorks as I have :')**

 **But alas, all good things must come to an end. And here it is, fellas.**

 **See you at the bottom (for all you emotional people...beware).**

 **~•~**

When Leia woke up the next morning, something felt different. Not only was Han's shoulder gone from under her head, but the ship was quiet. No hissing pipes or clanging sounds from below. There was a warm stillness about the room that made her feel content and somehow also wildly uncomfortable.

With one arm, she pushed herself up off the sofa and looked around. What was going on?

Just then, Luke came jogging into the main hold, and he stopped short at the sight of his sister.

"Oh hey, you're up. We're here."

 _We're here._

"On—Tatooine?" she asked, almost hoping he would say no, even though she knew he wouldn't.

"Yeah. Han was gonna wait for you to wake up, but he's in the house talking to Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen. They, uh. . .aren't happy."

"How much is he telling them?"

"Just—just the necessary stuff."

Not entirely satisfied, Leia stood and stretched out her arms and legs. No wonder things had felt so still; they had landed already. The princess was afraid to move any further. The outside meant things that she wasn't ready to face yet. There was already a sharp feeling in her chest, jabbing her and closing up her ribcage. Probably her heart breaking in half.

Together, Luke and Leia made their way to the ramp—as slowly as humanly possible. Leia didn't want to walk outside and see the Suns or the sand or the bright blue sky. Those things no longer meant anything good. They meant she was losing her brother again. She hated it. It almost didn't feel real. Too fast. Too sudden. Too much.

The ramp was lowered. Dry heat drifted in, accompanied by a beam of brilliant morning sunlight. It cast a long shadow across the entryway, and when Leia looked at the dark shady spot, she imagined it growing and pouncing on her. Closing her into darkness forever.

"Ready?" Luke asked, not soundings a bit like his cheerful self.

"No."

"Me neither."

They went out anyway. It was true what people said—space was cold. And when you spent so much time in it, your body adjusted accordingly. Leia was feeling those effects when the blast of warmth hit her as they descended the ramp. The sunlight was simultaneously welcoming and frightening. The Suns got to see Luke every day. She wouldn't.

Her feet sunk a little into the sand, and she kicked some of it up. It really hadn't been that long since she'd been on that planet, but it seemed like it was. It symbolized something different now. Another lifetime, perhaps.

Luke's home wasn't far. In fact, they only had to walk for a minute or so, and Leia wished Han hadn't landed so close. She needed every second she could get. Quickly, Leia ran through all the things she still needed to do. All the closure that had to happen before she could leave. It was a lot. And there wasn't much time to do it.

"They'll probably wanna see me," Luke groaned. He was talking about his aunt and uncle, who were apparently having a conversation with Han inside the house.

"On a scale of one to ten, how mad do you think they'll be?"

Luke thought for a second. "Maybe a twelve."

Exasperated, Leia sank down against one of the moisture vaporators that peppered the little plot of land. Luke ended up down there next to her, and the two of them leaned on one another, side by side. It wasn't as atmospheric as it could've been, since the Suns were only a quarter of the way into the sky, but Leia still enjoyed being close to him. Feeling his shoulder bumping hers. Reminding herself that he was real and _here._ Would he seem real after she left? Or would it all feel like a dream?

Something about the moment felt a little familiar, but Leia couldn't place it. Their shoulders rubbed together again, and Luke must've caught onto what she was thinking about because he said, "Remember this?"

"What?"

"This is where we were. When we first met. We came here and talked. _Really_ talked. For the first time."

 _Now_ it made sense. Except, back then, the Suns had been setting, not rising. Maybe that's why it didn't feel the same. But there were other differences. Just one month had passed. That's all. And yet, the length of time had seemed to stretch into days and weeks and _years_ , never ending. She didn't _want_ it to end. Not now that she'd finally found that missing part of herself.

Back then they were so innocent. So young (and again, they were only a month older, but it was safe to say they'd matured quite a bit). Just two _kids_ , happy that they'd found a friend. Excited for adventure and experiences and fun. Cheerful and upbeat and spirited. Stealing speeders and running away and chasing stormtroopers and hiding on ships—

They'd been reckless, she thought. Unaware of any real consequences. And with a jolt of fear, Leia realized that Vader had once been the same way. Anakin was always looking for adventure. For an adrenaline rush. For something that was new and exciting and sometimes even dangerous. Leia shuddered.

Meeting Luke for the first time had been so amazing. She'd felt so hopeful and energized, anticipating their friendship that she wanted to grow. It _had_ grown. . .just not into the relationship she thought it might. They were siblings now. Twins. Always had been.

That morning, as the hazy, chill of dawn brightened into day, it felt like meeting Luke all over again. But for the last time. A strange sort of irony.

"I have something for you," Leia said, already feeling a little nervous about it.

Luke looked at her, confused. "You already gave me the journal. I don't need anything else, really."

"No, I know. This is different. This isn't really. . .I don't know, it's hard to explain."

"Well. . .okay, show me then."

Nodding, Leia pulled something out of her satchel and hid it behind her back. Her brother, growing more curious by the second, leaned forward. And to his surprise, the princess sheepishly revealed a narrow, intricate silver cylinder with a lone button on one side. When the light hit it just right, a glare reflected onto the sandy ground.

"Leia, what—what's—I—"

The laugh that came from Leia didn't sound like her. Nervous and uncomfortable.

"Um. Yeah, it's—it's our lightsaber. Anakin's."

What was _really_ interesting was how she was holding it. It rested on the very tips of her fingers, balancing precariously, like she wanted it to touch as little skin as possible. Like it was contaminated or something. When she noticed Luke was eyeing her weird, she just set the lightsaber down next to him.

"How did you get that?" Luke asked. One of his hands reached out to finger the metallic hilt.

"Sticky hands," she shrugged. But her eyes were off looking at the horizon. Really, Vader had transfered it into her hand on Coruscant, but since Han and Luke had been behind her, they never noticed. It had happened so fast that she didn't process it fully until she had left Coruscant and Vader behind.

Luke pushed the lightsaber towards her. "You can keep it," he assured. "I don't—"

"No, listen. I _want_ you to have it. And you could probably keep it a lot more safe than I could on Alderaan." She laughed, a bit sadly.

Luke raised his eyebrows in an "are you sure?" type of way, and Leia nodded vigorously, shoving the lightsaber back his direction. Carefully, Luke picked it up with both hands and held it low to the ground. Crazy to think his dad had owned it at one point. He'd defeated enemies and made daring escapes. Piloted ships and saved lives. His father had been a real legend. And now Luke got to have a piece of that.

Breaking out of his daze, Luke perked up.

"Oh, hey! I actually have something for you, too." He reached into his pocket for something, seeming elated. Leia didn't object—this could be the last time they'd ever see each other. She wanted to remember it happily, and not as a day she rejected a gift from her twin brother.

"Close your eyes," Luke ordered.

She did. This immediate compliance was interesting, Luke thought, because Leia didn't usually do anything right away. She'd always ask some sort of question. Not this time. He smiled. Maybe it was because he'd given her a similar command when they first met. While he led her to his house. It was astonishing how things came full circle like that.

"Hold out your hand," Luke instructed, bouncing impatiently.

Leia outstretched one arm, palm up. "You better not hand me something slimy," she cautioned. Luke only laughed.

"No, just trust me. Keep your eyes closed."

Leia felt something drop into her hand. It was lightweight and felt cool to the touch. Thin and wiry and round.

"Okay. . .open 'em."

When the princess blinked her eyes open, she didn't know what his gift was. It was what looked like a tight coil of wire with a single smooth stone set in the center. The wire wrapped around the stone in a little swirly design that resembled two circles. As she turned it around in her hand, it made sense.

"It's—is this a bracelet?" Leia asked with new interest.

"Yeah. Y'know all that stuff I took? I made it into this, for you to remember me by. You can wear it. Or, I mean, you don't have to, if you don't want to—"

"I want to."

"Oh. Okay, good, I was hoping you were gonna say that."

The two of them grinned at each other and Leia slipped the bracelet over her wrist. She really did love it. Somehow Luke had taken a bent wire hanger, a few random maintenance tools and a rock. And he turned them into a unique creation of his own, for her. And to Leia, that was the most precious thing anyone had possibly ever done for her.

"I'm never taking it off."

Both of them knew it was true.

"I'm gonna miss you," Luke said, and his voice was low and hollow. There was so much emotion in those few words that Leia felt his sadness brush across her subconscious just from hearing him.

"Yeah, I'm—I'm gonna miss you, too." She almost didn't get the words out. The thought of actually leaving Luke on Tatooine and returning to Alderaan. . .it had never seemed to real. Obviously she'd known it was going to happen at some point, but that knowledge was always something she took lightly. Like it wouldn't be happening for a long time, so what was the point in worrying about it? Now it wasn't far away. It was here and real and _happening now._

At this point, Leia was realizing she really should've prepared herself a little more for her departure. Maybe if she'd slowly built up some acceptance and awareness throughout the trip, this might be easier.

Eh, who was she trying to kid? Nothing was ever that easy.

It was like being given a gift—the most amazing gift you'd ever received in your life—and then having it taken away again. Not even gently. It was ripped out of your hands before you even had the chance to react properly.

Absently, Leia played with her new bracelet, twirling it around her wrist. Her train of thought had derailed a while ago.

"Back to where you started, I see," said a familiar voice.

Startled, the twins whirled around and released a breath when they saw their old friend, Ben Kenobi.

"Ben!" Luke exclaimed.

"Obi-Wan?" said Leia. It was really more of a question, as if she was unsure of herself. And Ben's smile wavered the slightest bit when he heard the name.

"What?" Luke looked at her. "Who's that?"

"I—well I guess it's him," Leia replied, still a bit unsure. Her eyes met Ben's (she would probably always call him Ben). He smiled at her; it was a small, tired smile. The same smile that she'd seen when a young version of him was gazing down at the two babies in his arms. . .

The anger flared up all over again. Ben—or Obi-Wan or whoever he was supposed to be—had lied to them. Made them think their father was dead. Separated them as infants. Never told them who their dad really was.

 _You were my brother, Anakin! I loved you!_

Leia swallowed hard, wondering how she was supposed to feel. How _did_ she feel? Undecided.  
The ground was starting to feel a little unsteady. Maybe that was just her head spinning.

Ben lowered himself down to the sand, sighing wearily.

"I understand you are. . .upset," he said softly, casting his gaze down on the grains of sand beneath him.

"Upset?" Leia turned to him. " _Upset_? I think _furious_ is a better word."

Ben didn't reply.

So Leia continued. "Our _father_ is _Darth Vader_! And you never thought that was worth mentioning? No. You told us that our father went missing. Was never seen again. And that was a _lie._ "

"What I told you is true. From a certain point of view."

"Who _cares_ about the point of view? You _lied._ Darth Vader is our _father_."

Her harsh words rang out and echoed slightly in the early morning air, and the whole group just sat there for a moment, stunned. Ben had a guilty look on his face, like he was rethinking just about every choice he'd made in the past twenty years. Maybe he was. Unfortunately for him, Leia wasn't finished.

"I thought Anakin could come back. I thought maybe someone could find him. But then, I saw him murder dozens of kids. Kids younger than _me._ And _then_ , I watched you two go at each other with _lightsabers_ , and Anakin—"

The last sentences tapered off into a sort of choked sound, because Leia couldn't bring herself to relive the moment again. Not willingly, anyway. It was still too fresh and too much.

Ben seemed disturbed at this new information. Rather than asking for more detail about what Leia had seen, he just lowered his head sadly.

"I'm sorry," he said, and Leia knew he meant it. He was probably sorry for a lot of things.

 _You were my brother Anakin! I loved you!_

That phrase just wouldn't leave her alone. She tried to push it away, since it was making her feel bad for yelling. But at the same time, those words made her curious. Curious to know more. And after a few seconds, she _did_ feel majorly ashamed, because Ben and Anakin had been friends. Good friends. Like brothers. She tried to imagine herself in a fight to the death with Luke. The thought made her sick.

"I'm sorry, too," Leia said suddenly, regretting her outbursts. If she wanted to become a politician, she'd really have to work on thinking before speaking. "I didn't—I guess I didn't realize it hurt you, too."

"I understand. May I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"When did you see this?"

Leia leaned back against the vaporator, closing her eyes to weaken the glare of the rising Suns.

"Just yesterday. On Coruscant."

"If you don't mind my asking, what else did you see?"

With that one innocent question, the floodgates opened again and all the memories poured out. Leia had to focus on breathing to make sure she didn't get lost in the tidal wave.

And she told them. She told them about the Palace and the Padawans and the fiery planet and the yellow eyes. . .and about her mother. The way she had sounded so sure of herself when she said, "There is still good in him. I know it." The pain and sadness and anger and heartbreak and every other emotion that Leia felt came rushing out of her. By the end of her story, Luke and Ben were looking paler than usual.

"I—"

"You're sorry," Leia interrupted. "I know."

There was silence. A thick silence that pressed down on them, urging someone to say something. No one did, for a long while.

Until finally, Ben sat up a little straighter and said, "I know this is a secret that you were never supposed to hear. It can't be easy, accepting the truth. But no matter what happens next, always remember that you are your father's children. But you are not your father. And the Force will be with you, always."

Luke and Leia glanced at each other, letting those words resonate until they made sense. When they turned around to reply, Ben was gone.

"How does he do that?" Luke asked, almost a bit irritated.

Leia shrugged. "We'll probably never know." She didn't get to say goodbye to Ben, and there were questions for him that would have to wait, too. Her head was spinning like crazy. Too much to process.

Now that they were alone once again, Leia shuffled closer to her brother and rested her head on his shoulder. Hesitantly, Luke wrapped an arm around her.

"I don't wanna go," Leia whispered, squeezing her eyes shut so she didn't have to look at everything she'd be leaving behind. "I'm not ready."

Luke's voice was close to her ear. "I don't want you to leave, either. But—you have to. For your family. And your people." He sounded sad, but firm.

"You guys are my family, too," Leia replied immediately. "What am I supposed to do when I won't see you every day? When I won't be able to even _talk_ to you? Ever?"

Clearly Luke hadn't considered that specific point, because he didn't respond right away. Eventually, he shifted his position a bit and bumped his head against Leia's.

"We won't be able to communicate, but you'll always know where I am. And at night, when you go to bed, just. . .look out the window. I will, too. So you'll always know we're looking at each other, and we're still connected."

"But I won't be able to see you."

"You'll feel me."

He said it with such confidence that Leia didn't even think to question the logic for once. Besides. She liked his idea. It was like a promise. And she knew they would both keep their end of it as long as they could. Her connection with Luke was something she'd lived without for her whole life—except one month. And that one month was enough to change her entire perspective. Now that she had experienced life with a twin brother, she didn't want to go back. Going back felt like betrayal. Like throwing something away when that thing was what she loved most in the galaxy.

Luke abruptly said, "So, if you saw our mom when we were born. . .you know who was born first."

Wide eyed, Leia lifted her head and turned to give him a disinterested frown.

"You still care about that?"

"Kind of. Yeah."

The princess was the in the middle of rolling her eyes when Han came striding up to them, hands in his pockets. Frantically, Luke grabbed Leia's arm.

"Who was born first?"

She winked.

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

Leia only shrugged, but she was grinning the entire time.

To Han, she asked, "Are they mad?"

He tilted his head back and exhaled heavily. "Very. But I think it's gonna be okay. I didn't tell them about—you know. Any of—the stuff about _you guys._ "

That was good. Luke's guardians didn't know the twins had discovered their family history whatsoever, or even the fact that they were siblings. Whatever elaborate tale Han had crafted was probably more believable than whatever Leia would end up telling her own parents. That was one competition with him she'd never win.

"Hey, I—I think it's time," Han said quietly. When he talked like that, his voice got deeper. It made him sound older, Leia noted.

With great resignation, Leia rose to her feet, pulling Luke up with her. No other words were spoken as the trio made the short walk back to the _Falcon._ The twins wanted to be together every second they could until the ship left the ground.

When they all reached the lowered ramp, Leia put one foot on it, bit her lip, whirled around and launched herself at Luke in a hug that sent them teetering for balance. What if it was the last time they would ever hug each other? What if this was it?

Leia's arms were around his neck and her head was buried in his shoulder. She could've sworn he'd gotten taller in the past month.

Luke was holding onto her like she might disappear at any second.

"Love you," Leia whispered brokenly. She couldn't remember ever telling Luke that she loved him, but there was no time like the present. In case they never saw one another again, he needed to know. To know that she really did care about him and hated leaving. That he meant the universe to her and more.

She didn't want to let go. She had to, because Han was standing behind her, waiting. He wasn't pushing them to hurry, though, which was gratifying.

It wasn't fair. The universe wasn't _fair_ , and she hated it. Why did they have to leave each other? Why _them_? Leia tried to take a breath and calm down, but everything was spinning. The Suns were too bright, the air was too hot, the sand was too slippery, the ship's engine was too loud—

All at once, the world swirled together in a colliding explosion of blurs and colors and sounds, none distinct but all extremely vivid. And she was falling. Falling _up_ , tumbling and flailing and kicking and twisting, until she landed on something solid and the world was right-side-up again. And even though in reality she hadn't moved at all, she knew that the Force had just done something important.

There was a new sort of tugging she felt in her chest. Something warm and pulsing and pleasant. It was Luke. Somehow, they had just connected for the first time. She _knew_. Being twins meant that they already shared a special connection that was hard to explain, but it felt like their Force-signatures had just wrapped around one another and became _one._

"Did you—?" Leia questioned.

Shocked, Luke nodded. "I think so."

The feeling lingered there inside her, letting off a certain inner light that spread throughout her whole body.

"Leia," Han urged quietly. It had a tone of "time to go", which Leia detested very strongly. This couldn't be real. It was a dream. It _had_ to be a dream. A nightmare.

It wasn't. She was really leaving. And her heart, already shattered into a million minuscule shards of pain, somehow managed to break all over again.

Finally, the twins separated themselves, but their eyes stayed locked. Luke's striking blue and Leia's gentle brown. She tried to memorize every detail of those eyes. They were Anakin's eyes, she knew. His real ones.

Neither of them knew what to say. And after all that they'd done together, what _was_ there to say, anyway? For the rest of their lives, they would hold special memories that only _they_ would ever understand. Only _they_ would ever truly relate to one another. Luke was the only person in the whole galaxy that Leia knew she could trust with her life.

(Other than possibly Han and her parents, but that was beside the point.)

"I guess—I guess I'll see you around," Luke stammered lamely.

Leia nodded once. "Yeah. Yeah, I'll—It. . .won't be the same without you."

"Thanks for teaching me how to live my life."

"Thanks for teaching me how to rationalize."

They laughed, but their hearts weren't in it.

Leia couldn't stand the look in Luke's eyes, so she stood up a little taller and stared him down fiercely.

"This isn't goodbye," she said. "It's only the beginning." It wasn't an empty promise or meaningless words to make him feel better. Leia genuinely _knew_ they would meet again. Someday. Even if she had to force the matter. Even if she had to run away again and fly halfway across the galaxy. Even if it meant her parents were angry with her. When she got home, they'd probably be furious. But Leia didn't care. This was worth it.

"Are you sure?" Luke asked. He wanted her to say yes. So she did. Because she knew.

"I'm sure. Until then. . .keep your eyes on the horizon."

And Luke offered her a real smile.

"I will."

"May the Force be with you," Leia said, forcing out a smile to match her brother's. But this time it didn't feel so painful. It felt. . .hopeful. Like there was something to look forward to. She backed onto the ramp, Han close behind her. But just before she was going to rip her gaze away from Luke, he called out, "Hey, Leia?"

She turned back, eyes wide. "Yeah?"

"Love you, too."

Leia's heart broke for the third time that day. But somehow, out of that new warm place inside her, she was able to smile. And Luke smiled back.

"Take care, kid," Han said.

"You too."

The ramp rose up as Leia stepped backwards into the ship. She stood on her tiptoes until Luke vanished from her vision altogether. Disbelievingly, Leia put a shaking hand on the sealed entryway, her lips parting slightly with words she couldn't say. The _Falcon_ 's engine whined louder as the ship lifted off the ground, probably disturbing all the sand around it. Leia knew she should sit down. She should just get ready for the ride. Just _sit down._

She couldn't. Not yet. There was something that—

There it was. That little nudging in the back of her mind. Someone was trying to talk to her. _Luke_ was trying to talk to her. Quick as lightning, Leia lowered her mental defenses, holding her breath for whatever her brother had to say. The ship was getting higher every second.

 _See you soon._

Leia's face broke out in the most brilliant smile she'd ever experienced in all her life. So she pulled at their connection and replied.

 _Yeah. See you soon._

And suddenly the universe was just a little brighter.

 **~•~**

The flight to Alderaan wouldn't take long once they were in hyperspace, and Leia spent most of the trip sharing the pilot's seat with Han, holding tightly to one of his hands. He had a sort of calming energy about him, and she liked to pretend it transfered to her when she was around him. Sometimes it did. Ironically different from how she _used_ to feel around him.

They talked of easy things (like the estimated time of arrival and other related nonsense) and made light jokes. Leia tried to be happy. She really did. But with the weight of coming events pressing down on her, she just couldn't shift her focus to anything else. And there was something else bothering her. About Han.

About an hour into their short journey, Leia decided to speak up. Might as well, considering she'd be stuck on Alderaan soon anyway.

"Can you promise me something?"

Han glanced away from the mesmerizing blue of light speed. "Depends."

"Depends on what?"

"Depends on if I think I can."

That didn't make sense, so Leia pressed forward. "I need you to promise. . .that when I leave. . .you'll find someone else."

Han reeled on her so abruptly that both of them had to stand up to avoid tumbling to the floor.

" _What_?!"

"I just—I want you to be happy! And—"

"I _am_ happy, Princess! I'm happy with _you._ "

"Yeah, but what happens when we never see each other again?"

The words sounded much worse when they were out of her mouth like that. She wished she could take them back, but at the same time, they were true.

Her reasoning might sound faulty out loud, but in her head it made perfect sense. There weren't many options, anyway. Even if she had enough courage to arrive at home with Han and announce their relationship (or whatever it was) to her parents, they wouldn't allow it. They had her whole life planned out already. They knew the type of guy she was supposed to marry someday, and so did she. As a princess, it was no mystery. She would have to marry someone with either a royal status or connections to someone of a higher power.

Han was. . .not that.

But she liked him. A lot. So much that maybe, if they were allowed to go on like this, it would be love. Maybe it was _already_ love. Far be it from Leia to have any knowledge of how she felt. Especially about Han.

It just couldn't happen. She'd known since the first day she saw him, hunched over a control board, scruffy hair falling into his warm eyes—

She really needed to stop doing that. Stop fantasizing and remembering and sidetracking herself on little rabbit trails like that. That night when they'd—when they'd kissed. . .Leia _knew_ she shouldn't. She knew there would be consequences later. That she'd fall head over heels once and for all, and then there was no going back.

Well, now she was seeing the consequences.

Leia didn't _want_ Han to find someone else. That was probably the last thing she wanted. The worst possible scenario. But she also didn't want Han to live the rest of his life wondering how she felt or where she was or if _she_ had found someone—

Someone that her family would undoubtedly present to her.

"Don't say that," Han persisted. "You think this is the last time you'll see me?"

"I do."

"C'mon, Princess. You know me better than that."

"Do I?"

"I'd hope so. Not like I spent the last month carting you around the galaxy or anything."

Leia glared half-heartedly. "And you loved every second of it."

To her surprise, Han laughed. His eyes were bright when he said, "I don't know about _every_ second. But a few were. . .good."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. And I don't want to find someone else. I won't. It's not up to you."

Leia traced absent circles on the seat of the chair they were sharing. "But don't you think—I mean, are you sure you want to wait? I—I have responsibilities. And a duty. To my planet. I won't be leaving for another one of these trips for a long time."

"That's okay. I'll wait."

"Not forever, you won't."

"If forever is what it takes, then yeah." He laughed bittersweetly. "Guess I'm in it for the long run."

Han's loyalty was refreshing, but it almost made her a little bit sad. Here he was, willing to wait an eternity for her to see him again. And they'd spent a month together, most of which was occupied with them arguing and see who could make the other angry enough to yell the loudest. When exactly had these feelings developed? Had they always been there? Had Han and Leia always felt this way about each other?

They sure had a funny way of showing it, if that was the case.

Instead of replying (words were pretty useless at this point, anyway), Leia just leaned into Han's shoulder a little more and smiled. That moment meant a lot to her, and always would. She observed everything in that one fragment of time. The flashing controls. The vibrant view of hyperspace. How the seat felt comfortable underneath her, and Han's shoulder was just the right shape for her head to rest on. And even though a deep sadness lingered in her heart (she'd left Luke on Tatooine, after all), Leia felt her heart swell with happiness.

 **~•~**

"Where am I supposed to land?" Han asked.

Pacing the length of the cockpit, Leia held up a hand. "I don't know, I don't know! Hang on, just—let me think." Han let his head fall back against the seat. He'd told her to stop pacing several times already.

"I don't know why you're making it such a big deal," he commented. This only succeeded in making Leia even _more_ irritable as she paced, and she threw her hands out to the side.

"Because it _is_ a _big deal_!"

The two of them were discussing what to do when Han's ship approached Alderaan. He wasn't extremely concerned about the details, but Leia was frantic. Which made sense, all things considered, but Han was still confused.

"Do I have to request permission to land at the palace?" he asked.

Leia looked at the ceiling, despairing. "I don't know, probably. It's the palace. I'm sure we have some sort of landing security."

"You don't _know_? It's _your palace_."

"It doesn't belong to me. I know we don't just let civilian vessels dock in our landing bay, though. They'll want some sort of identification."

"Can't do that, sorry."

"Why not?"

Han just raised an eyebrow, and Leia understood his meaning.

"Why don't I just tell them you're aboard?" Han offered, seeming satisfied with that option. But Leia spun around, jaw dropping impossibly low.

" _Tell_ them? Absolutely not! Every being in the town will be swarming the place before you can count to three. And my _parents_. . .they would _lose it._ I can't  
do that to them. It has to be subtle. And—they can't know how I got back."

"Won't you eventually have to tell them?"

"I—well _I_ don't know! I'll figure something out. Just. . .land in the shipyard." An idea was forming.

Han tilted his head at the irony. "You want me to drop you off where I picked you up?"

" _Accidentally_ picked me up. But yes."

With a deep sigh, Han only said, "Okay."

And not a moment too soon, the ship lurched out of hyperspace and sent Leia sprawling to the floor.

"I _told_ you to sit down," Han remarked.

Leia had bigger worries. She scrambled to her feet and practically crashed through the front window of the cockpit because she was so excited. The control board prevented her from getting as close to the window as she wanted, but she could see Alderaan by now.

Her home.

After all the time away, Alderaan was somehow both the most welcome and unwelcome sight ever. Once she set foot on the ground, who knew when she'd get to leave again. But at the same time, there was a connection she had to Alderaan that would always be there, and so she missed it. More than she realized, apparently.

Leia couldn't help but smile at the sight of her home planet. Its peaceful, swirling atmosphere of blues and greens and white. No bright flashing lights or sky-high walkways like Coruscant, but that was fine by her. If she was being honest, she preferred Alderaan. By a long shot.

"We don't have a planetary defense system," she mumbled to Han. "You can just land."

"I know," he said. He'd been there once before, after all.

As the _Falcon_ angled a little forward and started its descent, Leia kept her eyes glued to the planet's surface. She could already feel the presences of the people down there. _Her_ people. Little glowing lights where the Force was. She reached out with her mind, searching and feeling for two lights in particular. She just had to look for the right—

There they were. Familiar. Warm. And. . .sad. But they were there, and she was _so_ ready to see them again.

But—Han.

Guiltily, Leia turned her head to watch as Han expertly navigated them down. It was a good thing he was a decent pilot, because his eyes weren't even paying much attention to where he was flying. He was looking right at her.

"What?" Leia asked, not loud, but still a little guardedly.

"Nothing. I'm just—I don't know." And he left it at that. Leia sank down next to him again, just as Chewbacca meandered in from some other area of the ship. He took a look out the window and roared something at her. Leia looked to Han for clarification.

"He likes it," Han said. "The planet."

Leia laughed softly. "Me too."

Before long, the three of them were watching out the curved viewport as the ship lowered to the ground of the Alderaan shipyard—right where they'd started. Chewie was going to run a diagnostic test on the ship, so Leia hugged him goodbye right away. (Wookiees were surprisingly soft.)

"Bye," she said into his fur, and she heard him roar something back.

"He says to stay out of trouble," Han translated, grinning.

"No promises."

Then Han told Leia to head for the ramp, which he was lowering, and he'd catch up. So she left the cockpit slowly and found her way to the entryway.

(What if she never stepped onto the _Millennium Falcon_ ever again?)

By the time Leia reached the ramp, it was lowered, leaving the entrance open. Alderaan's main city was so close, she could see it. But for some reason, Leia couldn't bring herself to actually exit. There was nothing standing between her and the crisp dusk air of Alderaan. She could even feel the light breeze drifting in already. It smelled fresh and cool, signaling the spring season that was on its way. Everything about the outside was so familiar, but she didn't want to actually enter into it. Not yet.

"Gotta admit, it's pretty nice," Han said, suddenly right behind her. Leia only jumped a _tiny_ bit, but hopefully Han didn't notice. If he did, he never let on.

"Yeah. A lot prettier than the last time I saw it."

The night she ran away, it had been late at night. Now, the sun (just one, which was oddly strange to see) was setting over the snow-capped mountains in the distance, casting a low shadow across the town. She'd never seen so many colors in an Alderaan sunset before. Bright orange and deep red and soft pink and royal purple. Like the planet itself was celebrating her return.

"You gonna get home okay?" Han asked, very obviously concerned. Without even looking at him, Leia knew he was standing behind her, watching the sunset, hands in his pockets. His hands always did that when he was nervous.

"I'll be fine."

But the unsaid question still hung in the air: "Then why aren't you leaving?"

She had to make a decision. Right here, right now. No time to waste. No time to think things over. She had to tell Han how she really felt, _immediately._ In this very moment. And if she didn't, the regret would live with her forever.

"Um—Han. . ."

A hand on her shoulder, he spun her around so she was facing him. Leia made the grave mistake of looking into his eyes, and for a few seconds, she got lost in them.

"Han, I—I—" She was really trying. But the words wouldn't come out, no matter how hard she pushed them forward. "I—love—"

Wow, those eyes were hard to get out of.

"I know."

Leia blinked. "What?"

"I know."

And that settled that. Maybe it was something about the sunset that was making her too confident. Maybe it was the "now or never" mindset that she was in. Or maybe she'd looked in Han's eyes for one second too long.

(It was definitely a combination of all three.)

But all of a sudden, Leia was on her tiptoes and she was hugging Han but she was also totally kissing him again and _how did this happen, she was not supposed to do this anymore—_

They broke away and Leia backed up a step, just out of shock. Heart pounding and hands shaking, she made the decision. It was love. It had always been love. And it would always _be_ love. That was when she crashed into Han, arms wrapping around him tightly.

"Thank you," she tried to say, but it ended up coming out like a broken whisper. Han didn't ask what she was thanking him for—apparently he knew. They stayed together like that for a few solid minutes, until the sunset's glow washed over them and clothed the ship in a shadow.

"Still want me to find someone else?" Han asked jokingly. Leia lifted her head and mumbled a "not really". Han only laughed.

When time forced them to separate, Han took Leia's hand and placed something in her palm. Curiously, she held it up.

It was a pair of golden dice, linked together by a thin chain. Sunlight glinted off their surfaces, scattering little beams in a few directions.

"What's this?" Leia asked, not sure what kind of answer she was expecting.

Han was surprisingly solemn when he replied, "It's a promise. It's me telling you I'll be back. No matter what it takes, I'll be back."

"Are you—?"

"I'm sure, Leia."

The princess fingered the dice a moment longer before slipping them in her pocket and looking up to meet Han's gaze. She had come to the conclusion that she liked Han's eyes. They made her feel at home.

Maybe _he_ was her home, metaphorically speaking. And she would come back to her home as soon as she could.

Her eyes traveled over to the town, bathed in the final rays of evening sunlight. Han saw her look and gave her a gentle shove.

"Go on. You miss them. And if you ever miss _me_. . .I'm only one call away."

Leia knew he was referencing the comlinks, and she could call him whenever she needed to. She refrained from pointing out that comms only worked from certain distances; it would just ruin the moment anyway.

She started down the ramp, footsteps echoing metallically all the way. Han rocked back and forth on his heels, watching her go. At the last possible second, he couldn't help himself.

"Leia!" he called out, smiling when she turned around.

"Yeah?"

"I'll be back."

"I know."

"See you soon, Princess."

Off the ramp now, Leia gave him a nod and a half-smile that rivaled his own. "See you soon, Flyboy." And then she was gone.

 **~•~**

It was a quiet night in Aldera. There was hardly anyone out, which made Leia's little stroll a lot easier. The few people that _were_ mulling around never saw her, because she stuck close to walls and found little hiding places as she went. She could see the palace from here. It looked so dull and lacking its usual sparkle. Even the town felt sad. Leia realized with a jolt that this was her fault. She left. She left her family and her people and everyone that cared about her. It had probably taken a toll on not only her parents, but also _all of Alderaan._

With new energy, Leia took off in a sprint, dashing through the market and across the little stone bridge that led to the palace garden. With the dark of night creeping in, it was hard to find the exact place she'd left from, but eventually Leia found the narrow crevice between the two walls. For a brief moment, she paused there, one foot in and one foot out, heart crashing around in her ribcage. She only allowed the panic to touch her for one second. Then she continued.

As Princess Leia squeezed through the tight passage (had she gotten taller over the past month?), her excitement grew and grew. Already, her parents' signatures were pulsing inside her, fueling her with strength to keep going. All worries seemed to vanish, and Leia was no longer concerned with how upset they would be. She only wanted to leap into their arms and feel normal again.

There were so many things she couldn't tell them about. Luke. Han. Vader. Anakin. The Empire. The Emperor. Her entire adventure would have to be a secret. She'd have to come up with a cover story. And of course eventually she'd have to show them the space station model she'd found on the Star Destroyer—

Leia hopped out into the open air of her mother's garden. The last bit of fading sunlight showed her the new green buds peeking out of the grass, and Leia was careful not to step on them. Sure enough, the lattice was still there, clinging to the side of the smooth wall. This time, she wasn't afraid to climb it. Compared to other things she'd done recently, climbing up to her room was practically child's play. So she stuck her feet in the holes and scrabbled up, much quicker than when she had come down a month ago.

Once she reached her balcony railing, Leia swung her legs over and tiptoed over to the glass doors. They were open. And she could hear noises coming from inside her bedroom. Sad noises. _Crying_ noises.

Now anxious, Leia crept silently closer to the doors and poked her head in, hoping the darkness would hide her if need be. There, kneeling near the foot of her bed, were her parents. Breha was the one crying (not loudly—it wasn't in her nature to cry loudly) and Bail was crouched next to her, rubbing her back and looking ultimately drained.

Leia had only seen her mother cry twice, as far as she could remember. This was her fault. She did this to her parents. She wanted to rush in and wrap them up in a hug. But that would only make matters worse.

Yet, there was no avoiding it. She had to go in. She _wanted_ to. She wanted to hear their voices again.

Despite the past month's events, Leia scraped some hidden bits of courage up from the depths, took one necessary deep breath, and stepped into the room. Her parents didn't notice. Or, they didn't notice until Leia purposely knocked on one of the doors.

Their heads whipped up so fast that it startled Leia. It took them a moment for the whole thing to register, and it was probably hard for them to see who was standing in the doorway. There was a tense second of silence.

Then Breha's hand went to her mouth as she gave a strangled sort of gasp. Bail stared, face in an expression between a frown and a delighted smile. Mostly, there was shock.

Breha gathered her wits first. "Leia?" It was a whisper. Less than a whisper, even. It was a breath. A disbelieving, shaking breath that broke Leia's heart for the millionth time that day.

She was home. The first beams of moonlight shone down on her, illuminating the balcony enough for her parents to see it was really her. Leia never understood what they saw at first, because their faces were horrified for a split second—maybe they thought she was a ghost. But after that, they looked so happy that Leia felt tears at the corners of her eyes. Her parents were happy. They loved her. She was home.

"Leia?" This time it was Bail. His voice was hopeful. Vulnerable. Like he thought he was dreaming and he was afraid she was about to disappear again. She swallowed.

"Mom, Dad. . ."

At her voice, they let out thrilled laughs through tears and their hands went to their mouths again. It was as if they were waking up from a nightmare, relived beyond belief. It was the first time she'd seen her father cry.

Leia didn't wait. She broke down in tears of her own and rushed for them, collapsing right into their open arms. They clung to each other. Leia basked in their presence, almost unable to believe she was really home. She was home. With her family. Her _family._

"I'm back."

 **~•~**

 **A/N: . . .**

 **. . .**

 **. . .**

 ***sitting alone***

 ***solemn tear***

 **Well there it is. Not much to say, except maybe the fact that there will almost definitely be a sequel. Allllmost definitely. We'll see how it goes, what with school and all. But yeah. Don't worry, it'll be much better written, with a really solid plot ;) and probably not this long. But who knows? Ya girl likes long books.**

 **Anyway, thanks for reading guys! There's still an epilogue on the way, and it should be up later this week. Until then, drop me a review/comment if you wanna (please?), and I'll see you soon :)**


	66. Chapter 66: Epilogue

**Diary of Leia Organa**

 _I used to think the galaxy was simple. Well, okay, maybe not simple. But I guess I never realized how complicated things were, or how complicated I could_ ** _make_** _them._

 _When you're thirteen, anything is possible. Your life has barely begun, and you have infinite opportunities to look forward to. And you think you have everything planned out, like you know what's going to happen. You think you're in control._

 _You're not._

 _Life isn't that easy. Life is hard and complex and upside down and confusing. Sometimes bad things happen and you have to stare them right in the eyes and move forward. Because you have to. Because that's just how things work, and you can't let one little problem get in your way._

 _Except sometimes it's not "little". Life, as I've found out, throws you massive curve balls, and just when you think you're doing great, you have to duck and run the other way. You're not in control. No one is. You can't change the way things happen. But you can change how you respond to them. Instead of running away, face the problem head-on. Don't back down. Keep going. Things will work out as you go._

 _As a kid, I thought the rest of the galaxy was this big mysterious adventure waiting to happen. That if I ever got to explore it, I would be living the best life anyone could have. I was so focused on ME. On what I wanted and what_ ** _I_** _thought. That was stupid. There are so many people out there, living their own separate lives. People who have it way worse than I do. I mean, look at me! I live in a palace, with two parents who love me. That's more than most people have already._

 _It's crazy how one small decision can alter the course of your entire life. I chose to run away. And look where it brought me. I have a twin brother and my father is Darth Vader and I went to Tatooine and Coruscant and had visions and I have powers and I think I might even love someone the way my mom loves my dad. All of that. . .if I had never left, I wouldn't know any of it. So in that way, I'm grateful for whatever possessed me to take off in the first place._

 _But on the other hand, now I have the consequences. A lot of them. Like, way more than you could imagine. For one thing, I literally worried my parents half to death, because I'm their only daughter (and heir to the throne. . .) and they thought I was gone for good. The entire planet of Alderaan was in a_ ** _mourning period_** _because I was gone. Sometimes I forget that I'm a_ ** _princess_** _. For crying out loud, an entire planet of people is counting on me to lead them one day, and what did I do? I disregarded that. Again, everything was about ME and it shouldn't have been. So the whole planet is freaking out, now that they know I'm here and alive and everything. My parents are planning some sort of celebration ceremony for later this week, to announce my return or whatever. See, if I was just a normal girl, they wouldn't be making it into this big ordeal. And. . ._

 _I had to lie to my parents. The story that I told them was true. . ._

 _From a certain point of view._

 _(Thanks, Ben, I'll be using that one a lot.)_

 _They don't know about Luke. Or anything about Vader. Or the Force. They know I hopped aboard a ship and rode around the galaxy on it. But for all they know, I never left it and just became good friends with the pilot. And I feel like a dirty lying idiot for telling my parents that, especially after what I did to them already by being missing._

 _Every now and then, a word or phrase almost slips out. Something that would tip them off. Because it's so darn HARD to keep this to myself every day. But I have to stay as strong as I can, because they can't ever find out. Okay. Eventually they'll have to. But for now, I'd really like to live a normal life (or as normal as it can be) and that won't happen if they find out their big "Leia is a descendant of Vader" secret was spoiled._

 _I miss Luke. A lot. I feel him, sometimes. . .but not in the way I want to. I just feel where he used to be. Like the hole is back, and he's supposed to be filling it. Every night, I look out my window. I pretend I can see Tatooine from here, even though I definitely can't. But if I picture it hard enough, it's almost like I can see the two Suns again. And then I sort of see Luke. At his own window. Doing the same thing as me. I can't REALLY see him. But there's always a blurry sort of image that is there and gone in a split second. Maybe it's real. Maybe I'm imagining it._

 _I miss Han, too. Where is he now? Halfway across the galaxy? Or right across the town? I doubt I'll ever really know. There's pain when I think about him and what we could've had. We're young, but I think in time, we could've made something work. If nothing else, I hope one day we meet again and can be friends. At this point, that's all I ask._

 _And now that it's been three weeks since I got back, my parents are toning down their paranoia a little bit (besides this dumb celebration thing). For the first few days, all they would do is look at me. I tried talking to them, but they either didn't reply or they nodded and said, "Oh." Like they were in some daze. Now they talk to me, but their words always sound worried. As if they believe I'll just run off again and leave them behind. At first they seemed like their emotions were right between "we're so happy you're back" and "if you ever do that again, we will end your life". Now it's just kind of the second one. And I feel bad for scaring them like that, but it's getting harder and harder to feel guilty when they're this mad. 'Cause basically every privilege I ever had has been revoked. I'll be lucky if I get to leave the palace before I'm dead._

 _I hope Luke's punishment is less harsh than this._

 _Speaking of Luke. . .I've been tempted to go through my datapad and read whatever he has on there. I always saw him typing on it, probably journaling. Part of me really wants to know what he was writing about. But the other part of me doesn't think it's a good idea. What if it's private? I wouldn't want to be looking at something I shouldn't. And it would only remind me of him and the fact that he's not here. We're not together. Maybe for the rest of our lives._

 _I don't know. I guess life goes back to normal now. Isn't this supposed to be the part where I learn my lesson and decide to accept my duties and stuff? Because if it is, I'm not feeling it. Instead of feeling acceptance, I just feel empty again. Without Luke and Han and Chewie. . .well, I guess I'm not the same. They were a part of me, and I was a part of them. Now that we're split up across the galaxy, I wonder if they feel the same way I do. I WANT to feel closure and I WANT my life to carry on as planned. It should, right?_

 _. . .Right?_

 _I'm just afraid I'll forget it all. What if one day I wake up, and everything feels like one big dream, and all the details are lost for good? What if I start to forget the little things, like words we spoke to each other or moments where we were all happy? Then what? Will I start to forget big stuff after that, too? It's scary. No, it's_ ** _terrifying._** _I just spent the past month of my life finding out who I am and who my family is. I'm not willing to lose them. Especially not so soon. It's just not fair._

 _Soon my parents won't believe my story anymore, because they'll see I'm not the same. And really, how COULD I be the same after that? Even I can see changes in myself that must have happened recently. Not necessarily physical changes, but mental ones. My skills in the Force have definitely improved, but besides that, I just feel_ ** _different._** _Like a new person, almost. I mean, I'm still the same Leia, but now I think differently and I know things that the other Leia didn't know. That doesn't make a lot of sense, but I know what I mean._

 _So now that I'm home, I guess I have to adjust again. Wake up early. Study. Read. Look unnecessarily fancy all the time. Wear shoes. Have my hair up (which is the law, and it's incredibly stupid, if you ask me. . .which_ ** _still_** _no one does, because_ ** _still_** _no one cares what I think). Attend a few unimportant Senatorial meetings with my father, so I can observe. Study more. Prepare for the future._

 _The future is scary, too. I understand that I'm only fourteen, but before I know it, I'll be sixteen. Ready for my Day of Demand. Taking the next steps to claim the throne and become an adult. I don't think I'm ready. Maybe I'll never be ready. Because if I have to stay here and rule Alderaan without Luke. . .or Han. . ._

 _I'm not sure I can last long that way._

 _I dream about them every night. The dreams seem so real that when I wake up, it takes me a minute to figure out where I am. And there's one little thing that I've figured out, which has helped a little. Sometimes my dreams aren't just dreams. They're memories. I replay real memories in my head, over and over, and keep reliving them. Pretending I'm still there. And it always helps for a little while. But you can only avoid reality for so long before you have to face it._

 _It's time for me to grow up. I don't want to, but I also don't have a choice. No more fooling around. No more sliding down the halls with no shoes on. No more running away. Alderaan is gonna need a Princess, and it's my role to fill. My parents are counting on me._

 _Luke and Han will always ALWAYS be special to me. I'll think about them every day and dream about them every night. But I need to swallow the truth: it's over. This adventure, this journey, this period of time. I wish I could change that, but I can't. The memories will probably linger forever, and I'm grateful for that little sliver to hold onto. It's just time for me to focus on my life here. On Alderaan. With my parents that love me and didn't sell their souls to the Dark Side._

 _Vader will always be Anakin to me. I won't give up on him. And I know I'll see him again. Luke will always be my brother, and the most caring, fun, accepting person ever. Han. . .is always gonna be Han, whatever that may mean. I'll always like him—love him. Even if I have to grow older and marry someone who has lots of money and royal blood, Han will always be Han. These things won't change._

 _But I will. I_ ** _have_** _. As much as it hurts to admit it, I'm growing up. Getting mature. Picking up more responsibilities. This is it. My last few years as a kid. Who knows what the future holds? Maybe someday I'll be back on the_ Falcon _, traveling the galaxy. Maybe not. Either way, I'm ready. Ready for the future. Bring it on._

 _Time to close this chapter of my life. On to the next, I guess._

 _-Leia, Luke's sister, Alderaan's Princess, Anakin and Padmé's daughter, Bail and Breha's daughter, and Han's "I know"._

 ** _~•~_**

Leia had always loved the rain and storms. This was one little secret she'd never shared with anyone else before, so it remained solely her own. Storms were calming. Even with thunder and lightning, they helped Leia focus and concentrate much better. Which is why she was ecstatic when she entered her room and saw the falling drops outside.

Hurriedly, Leia scrambled to her bay window and knelt facing the outdoors, making sure to waste no time. That blasted droid would be there any minute—

"Princess Leia, it is not wise to approach windows during a storm like this," said a tinny, accented voice.

"Just a second, Threepio." Leia waved him off, absently twisting the slim bracelet that still adorned her wrist. She needed to focus. That droid had been a personal gift from her father, and she enjoyed it to an extent. But C-3P0 was just about the most know-it-all, overbearing droid she'd met in all her life.

 _Focus focus focus—_

She let her eyelids slide shut and rested her hands on her knees. Calling on the Force got easier every night, but on this _particular_ night, it seemed to be playing tricks on her. Leia couldn't quite get to that perfect spot inside her head, where her connection with the Force was the strongest. Her concentration must be off. Probably because of all these distractions.

A jagged bolt of lightning lit up the dark sky.

"Princess, I insist you come away from the—"

" _Hang on!_ "

Leia dove deeper, digging her way to the warm place where she could properly connect to the Force. She followed the trail of light that always led her the right direction, carefully navigating through thoughts and emotions and senses. Threepio was probably still frantically urging her to get down from the window seat, but she couldn't care less about that. Right now there was something much more important to worry about.

She had to hurry, or her parents would find out, and then they'd ask all sorts of questions, and then everything would be ruined—

And then Leia dropped straight into the hazy warmth of the Force, letting it surround her and move her and take her mind where it needed to go. She'd gotten much better at trusting the Force, and tonight, it was rewarding her.

Just for a single, fleeting moment, Leia saw them. She saw Luke, elbows propped up on his bedroom window, gazing out at the setting Suns. She saw Han, leaning back in his pilot's chair, watching stars pass by. It only lasted for a second. Barely enough time to tell what was happening around them. Just as quick as blinking. Usually it was the same mellow picture, but other nights, Luke was outside, watching the sunset from the top of a sand dune. Sometimes Han was with Chewbacca, or walking through a town that Leia didn't recognize. She never got more than a glimpse. The first few nights, she'd wanted a longer look. She wanted to make sure they were okay and healthy and happy. The one split second wasn't enough.

But by the fifth night, she learned to appreciate the small window of time she was allowed to see them in. It became enough, even though she couldn't miss a single night or it would bother her for all of eternity. So, every night, rain or not, Leia went to the window and found her friends. Her family. Luke was always looking for her, too. She could feel it. He never succeeded. They never could communicate or truly see one another. It was just the one, tiny peek. For less than a second, every night.

But this night held something special. Their connection was always a little better when it was raining on Alderaan, so Leia had expected maybe _two_ seconds of a glimpse. Instead, there was a voice.

 _Leia?_

She nearly toppled to the floor, flooded with conflicted emotions. It was her brother, her brother was trying to talk to her, the opportunity was passing by, she needed to say something back—

 _Yeah?_

That was dumb. She should've said something better than that. Thankfully, it seemed like Luke hadn't even heard her response. No doubt they were both straining remarkably hard to reach this long distance connection that stretched halfway across the galaxy. Both were struggling to hold it there.

 _Leia?_ It came again. This time, she managed a different word.

 _Luke?_

The connection was fading, and she knew whatever Luke said to her next would be the last time they spoke for a long time. Possibly forever, which was an awful thought, but a realistic one. With the faintest of tears starting to brim in her eyes, Leia awaited his final response. And when it came, a small word, four letters long. . .she knew in her heart that they would find their way back to each other.

 _Here._

She had to open her eyes. She had to come away from the bay window. But Luke's word stayed there in her mind, keeping her grounded. And giving her strength to face the future, whatever it may hold.

 **~•~**

 **A/N: Hope you have a great Thanksgiving if you celebrate it! Thanks for being awesome readers! Catch you guys on the flip side ;)**


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